Étranger avec les Yeux Gris
by Hakujou Rikka
Summary: Two people meet at a bench. One is a princess behind a mask. The other is a lady named Eriko.
1. Premier

* * *

_(**Note: **Except the characters from Marimite, the author owns all characters. All events or occurrences, figures, or establishments in the following selections are purely fiction and have no connection to the original story.)_

* * *

_Hey, have you heard?_

That line. Yumi has been hearing this line since she arrived a few minutes earlier. A new student is coming to class today. It was an unusual time for Lillian to accept transferees more than a month after school opened, and this information has become a buzz among students.

A new student? Now, what was Lillian thinking? Yumi wanted to join all the other girls for idle talk, but --

Click!

Yumi put her pen down and lifted her head. Tsutako… she had done it again.

"You're supposed to be the curious type," the bespectacled student wondered as she put down her camera.

"I want to… really," Yumi said, sighing. "But…" Wait. She paused, looking about. Someone seemed to be missing in action. "Where's Mami-san?"

"Mami-san? Oh, she wanted to get a closer look."

"Closer… look?"

Tsutako shrugged. "I don't know. She has people to look into that for her. But… ah, I don't know," she said in a rather perplexed tone. "That's her after all." She then looked about. "Yoshino-san and Shimako-san, are they --?"

The class suddenly quieted down.

"Eh?" Yumi uttered. Her classmates seemed to have gone tongue-tied and frozen on their places. They were all looking toward the door. With Tsutako, Yumi looked to the same direction.

A new face in Lillian uniform was at the door. She stood tall, coffee-brown mess of hair worn down to her shoulders. Dark, gentle eyes shielded by round-edged rectangular frames. A firm, deadpan expression on her face showed as she looked across the room. She turned to Yumi's direction, then meeting her eyes.

Yumi stared back. The new girl's eyes were gentle, but they seemed to pierce right through her. They seemed to see right through her… like her Onee-sama's. The new girl's eyes reminded her of her Onee-sama's.

The new girl stepped aside as the teacher and the Head of the Academy entered the classroom. The Head of the Academy gestured the new girl to enter. The girl approached, head slightly tilted toward the floor.

"Everyone, please settle down," the teacher said. "Everyone to their seats."

The girls quickly and quietly sat down.

The Head of the Academy cleared her throat and began to speak. "Everyone, here before you is a new student from France. She will be joining us starting today…"

"She looks so dignified in our uniform," Yoshino whispered from behind Yumi. "I wonder why she came in just now."

"Me too," Yumi whispered back.

"My name is Sawada Hitomi," the new girl said in a deep, calm voice. "I'm pleased to meet you all." She bowed courteously.

'She doesn't speak like she's from France at all,' Yumi said to herself. But then, how do people from France speak? Her face formed another expression at the thought of this.

"Please feel free to ask questions before Sawada-san takes her seat," the teacher said.

"What school did you come from?" asked one.

"I'm from the Mnemosyne Academy of the Arts," Hitomi answered.

"Mne… Mnemo…" Yumi mumbled.

"Mnemosyne Academy of the Arts," Tsutako whispered. "It's a prestigious arts school in France for boys and girls."

"Boys and girls…?" A school for boys and girls. Yumi was curious of how it was studying in one.

"What's France like?" asked another.

"When did you come to Japan?" someone asked from the back.

"Were you born in France?"

"What's it like studying in your old school?"

"What do you do there?"

The questions came flying toward Hitomi, one seeming to overlap another. What's, why's, when's… they all came to her without pause or a moment to answer each one. And then, almost everyone began to speak.

"Now, now, everyone, settle down," the Head of the Academy said, breaking all conversations. "Class is about to start. Please reserve your questions for Sawada-san for next time."

The teacher directed Hitomi to the seat on the left of Yumi. "Please make yourself comfortable on the vacant seat next to Fukuzawa-san."

"Thank you, Sensei," Hitomi said, bowing courteously to the teacher. She approached the seat next to Yumi and settled comfortably on it.

"Ah, Fukuzawa-san," the teacher suddenly called Yumi.

"Hai!" Yumi answered.

"Please give Sawada-san a tour of the school grounds during your free time."

"Yes, Sensei," Yumi said. 'Free… time.' She was not supposed to feel uneasy about this as she was Rosa Chinensis en bouton. But somehow… why is it? Something about the new student seemed to make people seem to wonder… wonder the same way as they did toward Rosa Chinensis.

* * *

Noon. Lunchtime.

'Ah, finally…' Hitomi sat on the bench, sighing to her relief. Finally, she had lost them. Finally, she was alone. It was only her first day in Lillian, but the news of her transfer had spread like a deadly plague. She has not even known all her classmates' names, and then, girls from the other classes and batches have started approaching her. This was not Hitomi had in mind when she came to Lillian, when she came to Japan, more so… Then again, she was from a foreign land. Who was she kidding?

'This is no longer Mnemosyne, Hitomi,' she said to herself. 'It's a different world here…' Very different. One, it was not arts school. Another, it was an all-girls' school. And lastly, here… she would be plain Sawada Hitomi, just as she wished. No more than that. Really? She has lost faith in that now. She was assured of that once, twice, but somehow, why was it that someone manages to uncover her secret?

Hitomi sighed. She thought that if she continued all those thoughts, they would lead to one after another, causing the chain she did not wish to touch at the moment. She then lifted her head toward the blue sky as she released the invisible weight on her shoulders. It was then she remembered what her father and her grandmother have always told her, that even if people were born as they are, they share the same sky. This principle will guide her onward the course of life, her life as she will succeed them one day. One day… Hitomi sighed again. Her worries may have subsided now, but they will come back. It was up to her… if she will try to live as chance has given… or if she will spend the next few years worrying as she did previously.

The light from above passed through the lens of her bifocals to her eyes. 'Will things be different this time?' she asked. 'Please tell me…' And it was then she felt a light, cool breeze brush against her warm cheeks.

"You're new here, aren't you?"

Slightly startled, Hitomi turned to her right. A lady in a light green and yellow dress was sitting next to her. The headband that pushed her short, brown hair showed the prominence of her forehead.

"You are…?" the lady asked again.

Hitomi moved an inch away from the lady. She did not know her, and she was asking for her name. She was slightly relieved the lady did not know her at all. But…

"Did I scare you?" the lady asked.

Hitomi sat still, holding her stare at the odd lady next to her. Still, she kept her silence.

"My name is Torii Eriko. I graduated last year," the lady introduced herself. "And you are…?"

"Sawada Hitomi," Hitomi finally spoke. "Second Year Pine Group. I'm pleased to meet you… Torii-san?"

Eriko giggled.

Hitomi gave Eriko a rather perplexed look. She did not know whether the lady next to her laughed because she had a funny way of saying it or if she said it the wrong way.

"Oh… I'm sorry if I seemed to have forgotten my manners," Eriko said, smiling. "It's fine if you'll call me that. You were so interesting from afar. I thought I might…" She paused as she turned from Hitomi. "Get a closer look…?"

Hitomi relaxed on the bench as she turned from Eriko. Eriko seemed so strange, but somehow… Hitomi found a spot of relief.

"Your eyes are grey, aren't they?"

"Yes," Hitomi answered shyly.

"They're beautiful," Eriko said.

Hitomi turned from Eriko. The compliment seemed to rouse the uneasiness that had just died down in her system.

"You have a scar on your forehead."

Eriko's words struck Hitomi. No one was to know about it. Her hair covered the scar, so no one would notice it. The air must have revealed it a little. But if so, Eriko must have been close enough to see it. 'Had Torii-san been that close enough to see it?' Hitomi asked herself.

"It's all right… I won't ask."

Hitomi said nothing and looked to the sky again. Torii-san had an odd way of approaching her, but somehow…

"You look the part, Sawada-san," Eriko suddenly said. "Lillian could use someone like you…"

Someone like herself… Hitomi put her head down and wondered what Eriko had meant.

"Sawada-san!"

Hitomi looked to her left. Fukuzawa-san…? Upon recognizing who was calling her, she stood from the bench.

"There you are," Yumi said, stopping near Hitomi. "We've been looking for you."

"I'm sorry," Hitomi said, bowing.

"No, no, it was my fault," Yumi said. "I… um… lost track…" She paused, her face forming a rather animated expression. "Ah, anou…" she quickly added. "I can give you a tour after class. It's much better that way, isn't it?"

"Yes," Hitomi nodded. "Thank you."

"What were you doing here?" Yumi asked.

Hitomi turned around. The bench was now empty. Torii-san… where did she go? "Nothing… I just wanted time alone."

"Ah, I see," Yumi said. "We'd better go back now, or we'll be late."

Hitomi nodded and walked with Yumi back to class. And while, she did, she wondered where Eriko had gone.


	2. Deuxieme

"Yumi… where is she?" Sachiko put the finished pile of white sheets aside. She stood from her seat and looked out the window. She glanced at the time. Yumi seemed to be running late, and this bothered Sachiko. This very much bothered her. Where is Yumi? She has to be here now. Her thoughts began running its typical, hyper streak again.

"You won't see her yet, that's for sure," Yoshino suddenly spoke. She has just come in after running an errand.

Sachiko turned to Yoshino, frowning upon those words. Yumi… not coming? What? Why? She did not say anything. "She did not tell me anything," Sachiko said sternly.

"I feel pressure," Rei said while reading one sheet from her pile.

"Yumi needed time off the Rose Mansion," Shimako said. "It seems she needed to do what she had been putting off previously."

"Well, if it's that then, why has she not asked me?" Sachiko asked. She did not want Yumi to be keeping from her. What is she up to this time?

"Steam…" Rei said.

"Sensei asked her to give Hitomi-san a tour of the school," Yoshino explained.

"Sawada…?" Rei uttered. "Tanuma-san told me about her."

"She must be the student from France the others have been talking about," Sachiko said. "Why didn't Yumi tell me right away?"

"She has trouble with Hitomi-san," Yoshino said, sighing. "There were always students following her around like they're some sort of legion…"

"And that was only on the first day…" Noriko continued.

Rei, Shimako, and Sachiko turned to Noriko with perplexed faces. A pause followed.

"They have reason to," Shimako suddenly broke the silence.

The rest stared at Shimako with perplexed faces. Another pause followed.

Shimako took out something from her bag -- the Lillian Newspaper. The front page article had a candid shot of Sawada Hitomi and the headline: FROM FRANCE. "They made a special feature about her," Shimako said, showing the article to the other Roses. "It says there that she transferred from the Mnemosyne Academy of the Arts in Paris. Her profile is unusually interesting. Maybe it's why the students have begun acting that way."

"This reminds me of a similar tale," Rei said, turning to Sachiko.

Sachiko paid no attention to Rei and took her seat. She scanned the article. Sawada Hitomi. Daughter of a France-based Japanese philanthropist… Born in Manila, Philippines' Chinatown… Studied in the Thomas Stone Institute's Center for Gifted Children… Resumed schooling at the Mnemosyne Institute of the Arts at the age of nine... Shimako was right to say unusually interesting. "Where did they get all this information?" Sachiko asked.

"They must have looked into the school file," Shimako answered. "Hitomi-san said she was never asked for an interview." She giggled. "You know the paper these days, and they'd do anything for a scoop."

"True enough," Sachiko agreed. Sachiko slightly doubted the school paper's authenticity, but knowing Mnemosyne's record and reputation in France as well as most parts of the world, she could not doubt it.

"I've heard of Mnemosyne," Noriko said. "They say admission there is very difficult… for an arts school. I think it's logical to say that Sawada-sempai got in because she was from a center for gifted children."

"There are arts schools here and schools for both boys and girls," Rei said. "Why didn't she try any of them?"

"Her mother was a graduate of Lillian," Sachiko answered, then putting down the article. "Sawada-san must have been convinced to study here." Merely given that Sawada Hitomi was from Mnemosyne, Sachiko believed Lillian could need someone like her. And with this, she has decided.

* * *

The halls have finally become empty. Classes have been dismissed earlier, and some of the students have gone home. The others were either in their respective clubs or doing after school duties.

After school duties… Yumi remembered this earlier. She was supposed to be at the Rose Mansion. She had forgotten to tell her Onee-sama about taking time off to tour Hitomi around school. She had been putting it off day after day that the days turned into a week quicker than she imagined. She glanced at Hitomi as they walked along the empty corridor. Hitomi… in more ways than one did she remind Yumi of her Onee-sama.

"Something wrong, Yumi-san?" Hitomi asked stopping.

Yumi paused and shook her head, smiling. "Ah… nothing."

"What the girls in the milk hall told us… about Rosa Chinensis and me… is that it?"

"Aiya!" Yumi exclaimed, blushing as a funny expression formed in her face. How did --?

"Your face is never still, is it?"

Yumi's face flushed red. Her Onee-sama had said the same thing once. "Aa…" she mumbled.

"Did I say something wrong?"

Yumi shook her head, the redness in her face slowly disappearing. "Let's move on now."

Hitomi nodded and started walking along.

"You still haven't spoken much," Yumi said.

"I'm sorry," Hitomi said.

"You know…" Yumi said hesitantly. "I wanted to ask you that…"

"Ask… what?"

"If you and my Onee-sama are… you know…"

"Related?"

"Aa…" Yumi stuttered. "Yeah." 'Did I just…?' she said to herself. Oh no. Her face formed another expression. She feared Hitomi might hate her for it.

Hitomi sighed, stopping again.

"Ah… I'm so sorry!" Yumi apologized, bowing in front of Hitomi. "I didn't mean to. I know we've only been friends for a short while, but --?"

Hitomi reached out to pat Yumi's head.

"E?" Yumi felt the weight of Hitomi's hand on her head.

"It's fine. We're friends, right?" Hitomi put her hand off Yumi's head. "To answer your question, Yumi-san, I'm not related to Rosa Chinensis in any way." She stepped aside. "Shall we?"

Yumi nodded, and she and Hitomi continued walking toward the lockers.

"You know, Yumi-san," Hitomi said. "Even if… I've only been here for a week, I can tell you and Rosa Chinensis are very fortunate to have each other… really."

"Aa…?" Yumi flushed red again. "How can you say that?"

"Nothing. I can tell."

Fortunate. How could Hitomi say such about her Onee-sama having her? Yumi thought she was the only one fortunate to have her Onee-sama. But her Onee-sama? Is she? Yumi sighed at the thought of this.

"What… happened here…?" Hitomi stared at the door of her locker. She was frowning as she reached for the handle.

Yumi stared at the locker door as well. It did not seem tampered or anything similar or close to it at all. Hitomi was so perceptive to know hers had been touched.

Hitomi opened her locker. A disorderly batch of envelopes of different shades and letters of different designs filled her locker as it smelled of a hodgepodge of fragrances and scents. "Letters…?"

Yumi stared at the messy batch of letters in Hitomi's closet. "So… many," she remarked in awe. She has heard an instance like this from other people, seen it happen on television, read it in print, but she has never actually seen it happen.

Hitomi sighed, shaking her head. "I'm very sorry," she said and began gathering the letters.

'Sorry?' Yumi said to herself and wondered why Hitomi had said so.

Hitomi peered at her watch. Then, she took all the letters and walked to her left.

"Hitomi-san…?" Yumi watched Hitomi as she walked. "Where…?" Her eyes accidentally came across the trash bin. Hitomi-san… is she…?

"Maintenance is in eight minutes, right?"

Yumi glanced at the clock. "Ah… right," she answered. Maintenance? Hitomi-san is going to do it. "You're going to --"

Hitomi stopped and dumped all the letters into the trash bin.

* * *

"Is that so bad?"

"I didn't say that," Sei leaned on the table and stared at the former Rosa Foetida across her. "It's the third time I'd seen you on the same bench. Are you… looking out for someone?"

"What do you think?" Eriko looked into Sei's eyes. Sei was someone who would know too well, despite the nature she was known to have. Being the type to handle situations and consequences well enough, Eriko believed that if Sei knew what was inside her, she would probably have come up with a better name for it by now. Somehow… she did not want that.

Sei reclined, grumbling. "Shouldn't you be in class or something?" she asked, scratching her head.

"My schedule permits me to sit at that bench at least once a week."

"For what? Yamanobe-sensei teaches Science at Hanadera."

Eriko reclined, sighing. Yamanobe-sensei… Sei just had to mention him. It had been over long before it could start. She wanted to marry him one day, with or without her family's approval, but it seems…

"Your sighing tells me something happened."

"Maybe."

"Did he tell you not to see him anymore?"

Eriko shook her head. No. It was not that. It was not his fault all.

"Eriko…"

"Cars run out of gas as humans suffer burnout," Eriko explained briefly.

"Then…" Sei guessed. "It was you fault?"

"I said it already."

"Ah!" Sei exclaimed. "You're so cruel!"

Eriko giggled. She always found it funny to have people guessing.

"Dekochin…" Sei said wearily.

"You're just frustrated," Eriko said in-between giggles.

"I didn't say that."

"You don't have to." Then, Eriko sighed. Sei will figure it out soon… So will Youko… So will… 'Ah, never mind…' she said to herself. It was all right to tell people a lapse of personal judgment has been made in a particular situation. But to Eriko, it was this lapse that showed her immaturity… something she wanted to shed off along with her occasional impulsiveness. Impulsiveness… it was at that characteristic of hers alongside her sense of adventure that she met him… the same way she had met the grey-eyed stranger on the bench.

* * *

The sky was now a mess of orange, yellow, and red. The end of the day has come so quickly. Again, it was time to go.

'_You may come to assist here at the Rose Mansion at your most convenient time…'_

Hitomi had met the Roses earlier. It was not her first time meeting Rosa Chinensis, but it was her first talking to her on a personal account. The way she talked, the way she acted… somehow… the girls in the milk hall and Yumi…. Hitomi found it funny recalling what they asked her earlier. They seemed to have a point. In a way, Rosa Chinensis reminded her of herself. It was no wonder they asked her if they were related at all.

She peeked at her watch. She still has time left before her father or his secretary would call much later in the evening. True to her grandmother's words, being someone else beyond borders was not freedom from responsibility. It was simply lengthening the leash. But such lengthening is temporary. Hitomi stopped a few steps before the gate as her grandmother's words circled in her head. The seat. The leash that bound each of its occupants and successors. It was because of that unseen band around her neck that she cannot fully be herself.

"You're alone again?"

Hitomi lifted her head. 'Torii-san?' she thought. Yumi and Yoshino had told her who Eriko was before she graduated. Rosa Foetida. Eriko never told her. Hitomi approached the gate and bowed before Eriko.

"They must have told you," Eriko said, smiling.

Hitomi said nothing. She presumed it was something Eriko wanted to keep as some people seek the thrill of having others unravel their identities.

"I thought I might wait a little longer after the Roses and the others left," Eriko said.

"You were… waiting for someone?"

"I made a wild guess she would be going home alone."

"I won't be in your way, then…" Hitomi bowed again and turned to leave.

Eriko suddenly grabbed hold of Hitomi's arm.

Hitomi stopped before she could take another step. The warmth of Eriko's hand seemed to burn her skin.

"You're a strange one, aren't you?" Eriko remarked, grasping Hitomi's arm. "I wasn't waiting for anyone else."

Hitomi said nothing as she and Eriko began to walk. 'Things will be different…' she said to herself. 'How sure am I…?' It was then that dark patch of memory in her head began to seize her once more.


	3. Tiers

"The Ministre de la Presse Royal is here to see you, your majesty."

The man motioned his hand, signaling his secretary, Aveline, to let the guest enter. The neatly-combed hair on his head was dark with inconspicuous streaks of silvery gray. Signs of stress and experience showed on his eyes of dark blue and on the lines on his forehead.

To some people, particularly those who know him personally, the man on the desk is Jean Aimeri Michel Sascha Deodat Aristide de Croix. But to the rest of the French public, he is known as Le Roi de la France -- the King of France.

The king set the reference in his hands aside as he waited for the Head of the Royal Press to enter. He did not wish to meet him at a time like this, a time when people have been watching both of their actions closely, more so that he and Monsieur Auberon have been noted as longtime friends by the public.

The Royal Press had released to the public that the Enfant Royal de Couronne had gone missing eight days before the supposed official visit to Japan. A search team has been formed by Intelligence to find her all throughout Europe. This was the information the king had hoped to maintain to fulfill his only heir's unspoken wish before ascending the throne.

It has been good so far. But the king knew fooling the people was a grave sin.

The people have watched the Famille Royal de la France for as long as he could remember, and like him, his daughter, Isolde, has been adored by the public even before her birth. She was the younger child, but as the king's mother, La Reine de la France, predicted, Isolde would be pressed by the French to rule one day. And she was right.

Isolde rarely spoke, but he knew that like his son, Isolde's older brother Degare, her heart was not set toward the throne.

A knock.

The king lifted his head. A stocky, middle-aged man in a black suit stood at the door. His hair had thinned over the years, contrary to the sideburns and moustache on his aging face.

Monsieur Auberon entered, stopping a few steps away from the desk, and bowed before the king.

"What brings you here, Christophe?"

"Le Presse Associée asks for updates on her highness' whereabouts, your majesty."

The king frowned. Updates. He could not think of another fabrication at the moment.

"I would personally suggest a blackout for this, your majesty," Monsieur Auberon said, clasping his hands. "This is what Monsieur Hamon suggests as well." He referred to the Ministre de la Intelligence, Monsieur Gregoire Hamon.

The king pulled back on the executive chair. Blackout. Yes. He has considered this. But it was not as simple. The generations of the Royal Family have seen the consequences of blackouts. Presse Royal may have the upper hand at this; however, Le Presse Associée will always find a way to know what it is, one way or another.

"The Royal Family of France ranks among the most covered monarchial lineages in the world," Monsieur Auberon remarked. "Perhaps we should decide a more…" He paused to think. "…Convincing move on this."

"I agree, Christophe," the king said. "But sadly, I cannot allow blackout while the people are still dwelling upon an issue such as this. Iron is best shaped while hot, yes. Therefore, we need something to cool it… so as not to misshape it further than it has already been."

"Cool it down…" Monsieur Auberon stroked his chin. "But while the there is source and heat, your majesty, they will not stop. If we are to let such a scale of an issue subside, then I suggest we release a statement that will not cause anymore of it."

The king nodded, pulling up from his seat. Monsieur Auberon was right to say so. If he would not allow blackout, then he will have to take an alternative. His mother had taught him how a ruler defends himself and his actions, and it was time he used this knowledge. He paused to think. And ending his silence, he cleared his throat. "I will have Faustine call on a few people I may need, Christophe. I will inform Gregoire Hamon as well. Let me take care of this first before the day ends."

"Yes, your majesty," Monsieur Auberon said, bowing.

"You are dismissed."

"Good day." Monsieur Auberon bowed again and turned to leave.

'Mama,' the king thought as he knotted his fingers and leaned against his desk. 'If the same happened to me… what could you have done?' Despite his declaration, he was unsure. But the strategy he suddenly thought was the most he could think for now.

* * *

The gingko nuts have been crushed again. Shimako sighed at the sight of this as she walked along the concrete path. She had not paid much attention to them after noticing that lone cherry blossom tree. And upon seeing them in their cruel fate, she had awakened from the spell that had once befallen her. She will come back for them, yes. She will come back for them later. The trail of fallen gingko nuts had ended; Shimako lifted her head.

Someone was on the bench not far from where she stood. A tall figure. She seemed familiar. Shimako walked a little faster.

Hitomi lifted the camera around her neck. She brought it to her, adjusting the lens and focused on the view before her. She positioned her finger and slacked. She paused shortly and quickly pushed the button. She moved the camera away from her and exhaled, pausing again and glancing at the view before her. Then, she put the camera down.

"Hitomi-san…"

Hitomi turned to the direction of the voice. "Rosa Gigantea…"

"What are you doing here?"

"Nothing much," Hitomi answered. "I always come here after taking my lunch."

"Then… may I join you?"

Hitomi nodded.

"Yoshino still won't stop talking about how well you did in Math Class this morning," Shimako said, sitting down.

Hitomi smiled shyly but said nothing.

Shimako noticed the camera hanging on Hitomi's neck. She remembered that Tsutako had told her Hitomi had joined the Photography Club, something she thought was quite unexpected. "You chose the Photography Club?"

Hitomi lifted her camera a little. "I thought I might use it," she explained, referring to the camera. "It has been a while."

"Tsutako-san told me that… a person behind a camera can see what is inside her subjects when she takes pictures of them," Shimako said. "I'd like to doubt her that time, but…"

"Tsutako tells the truth in some cases, Rosa Gigantea," Hitomi said. "I see it the same way. Some photographers… see life through lens. Even if we see a blank projection, a happy one or a sad one, somehow, the lens manages to see through it. But then, even if it does… what comes out on film cannot speak for itself… therefore saying photographs are the best liars."

Shimako dwelled upon Hitomi's words. Hitomi said it well, she thought. To her, it seemed that Hitomi has been used to being behind the camera. But then, she began thinking… if Hitomi said so because she herself had been a target of the lens. "You seem to know so well," she said.

Hitomi shook her head. "It's nothing big… really."

Shimako gazed at Hitomi as she had set her eyes to the view ahead of her. The first time she had seen her, she reminded her of Rosa Chinensis. And now that they finally had the chance to talk like so, she felt a certain air that surrounded Hitomi… similar to that which Sachiko had. She wondered if Rosa Chinensis and Hitomi were related in some way.

"Noriko isn't with you…" Hitomi suddenly said.

"She said she needed to go on ahead." Shimako remembered that Hitomi could not have a soeur. "I think you would have made a good soeur if you had come earlier."

"Soeur…" Hitomi paused. "I don't think… I'd want to be."

"Not? May I ask why?" Shimako heard Hitomi saying the same in the Rose Mansion, but she did not say why.

"I don't want to disappoint anyone," Hitomi said. "I don't think… I can afford that anymore."

* * *

_I enjoyed your company…_

Eriko sighed in her exasperation. It was her first time to ramble this much. She still could not forget the evening she had with Hitomi yesterday. It was not planned. This, she admitted. She simply wanted to see Hitomi.

She put up her right hand and gazed at it. She held Hitomi's hand with it while walking. Hitomi's hand seemed cold to touch. But it was all right.

Hitomi was younger. Detached. Unaffectionate. She did not speak much. Eriko thought of it as a defense mechanism Hitomi used to shield off any feeling that would change her. But it was at that Eriko had started to be drawn closer to her.

Hitomi was sitting on the bench that day. She was looking at the sky. It seemed as if she were speaking to it. The light breeze that blew against her face revealed a scar on her forehead. And seeing this caused a certain loneliness to channel toward Eriko.

Whatever made her sit beside Hitomi that afternoon, what made her want to talk to her, to spend time with her, all of them… were not out of impulse… This, she was sure of.

_You will see me again, right?_

She asked this as Hitomi was about to leave. Hitomi did not answer. Eriko saw it through Hitomi's eyes that she would want to. She sighed at this. She thought maybe she should have pulled Hitomi closer to her instead. She would have done something to make her reciprocate… at least a little bit. She was impatient enough to do so that evening. But for some reason, she did not.

She wanted to hear Hitomi, to listen to her gentle voice, as she expressed her thoughts. She wanted to know Hitomi better. She wanted to break the wall of silence Hitomi had built between her and the world around her. And with this in mind, she had to treat it with the patience she had for other things.

Eriko looked at the time. It was time to go. She will not see Hitomi today because of a make-up class. But she will tomorrow. This, she has decided.


	4. Quatrieme

"Thank you for walking home with me today."

"It's nothing, Yumi-san. If you needed someone to walk home with, you can ask me."

Yumi smiled. Her Onee-sama needed to go somewhere, and so she had been left to walk home on her own. She was glad to have asked Hitomi to walk home with her. "Anou… Hitomi-san…?"

Hitomi turned to her.

"Where do you live?"

Hitomi looked on ahead again. "Saint Anatole. Why do you ask?"

"Eh?" Yumi uttered with a surprised look on her face. Saint Anatole? It was a small, affluent community a ride from where they were. It was a place public buses were off-limits and unauthorized vehicles needed passes. Instead of the public bus, people had to ride the Rouge. Rouges were small buses of red and white color-code, and they served as shuttles exclusively to Saint Anatole.

Tsutako told her that the Chantal stood there. The Chantal was the largest mansion in Saint Anatole. It was where the queen, Reine Adelais, retired after ruling France for more than two decades. Yumi wondered if it was another reason Saint Anatole had limited access.

"Yumi-san…?"

"Ah, sorry about that," Yumi said, laughing nervously. "I… got curious."

"Curious? About Saint Anatole?"

Yumi nodded. "Your house must be big like the rest of the houses there," she said.

"Not so," Hitomi said.

"Reine Adelais lives there, too right?" Yumi asked.

Hitomi nodded.

"Hers must be the biggest."

Hitomi smiled shyly.

"Anou… come to think," Yumi said. "Does someone else live there? I mean, it is a big place."

"Prince Degare is there," Hitomi answered. "And there are other people who live inside the Chantal."

"Other… people?"

"Household, chauffeurs, Prince Degare's secretary, Reine Adelais' personal assistant…" Hitomi enumerated. "The Chantal has quite a number of people inside. It's just too spacious."

"Oh, then…" Yumi said. "…I guess nobody gets lonely in there."

Hitomi suddenly stopped.

"Eh?" Yumi turned to Hitomi. She was looking through the shop window. Yumi wondered if she had said something that made Hitomi react like so. "Hitomi-san…" She turned to the window as well.

The television sets on the window were all tuned in to the same news channel.

"_Meanwhile, in France, tension has subsided as the Crown Princess has been traced by French Intelligence in Baltimore, Maryland…"_

Hitomi stared at the window. There seemed to be a burdened look in her eyes as she watched the news.

Yumi watched the news as well. "They found her already," she said. She read of the crisis in France on the newspaper two weeks ago. The King of France was supposed to visit Japan, but it had been called off beforehand because of the sudden disappearance of the Crown Princess Isolde. Like most students of Lillian, she was interested in the issue, but she lost track of it because of the busy schedule she had to keep up with. She simply relied on her classmates for updates.

Soon, a crowd began to gather.

_"The Crown Princess currently refuses to speak on the matter, and the question as to when she will return to France… still remains unanswered…"_

A chorus of whispers went about as the news concluded aroused. How the Crown Princess managed to go to America without being seen… Why she hid… Why she stayed there… Comments mixed with the questions. Criticisms. Doubts. Sympathies.

"How come they never show her?" a voice near Yumi asked.

Yumi watched the crowd disperse. 'The Crown Princess is so popular here even if nobody has really seen her yet,' she said to herself. She was curious of it, too. Hitomi… she was from France. Yumi wondered if she has seen the Crown Princess. She turned to Hitomi to ask.

The burdened look through Hitomi's eyes was still apparent. Hitomi lifted her palm from the glass and sighed. "We should get going, Yumi-san…" she said, the weight of her voice heavier than usual.

The two resumed walking.

Yumi glanced at Hitomi. She was quiet again, but there seemed to be something troubling her. She felt strongly that it had something to do with the report. The crisis in France has subsided, according to news, but why did it seem to bother her so much?

"Hitomi-san…"

Hitomi turned to Yumi

"Is there something wrong?"

Hitomi shook her head. "You seem to be interested in Princess Isolde," she remarked.

"Have you… met the Crown Princess?" Yumi asked hesitantly.

Hitomi tilted her head as she walked on. She did not speak a word.

"Hitomi-san…?" Yumi looked quizzically at Hitomi.

"Hmmm…" Hitomi lifted her head. "Let's say… I've known her since I was little."

"Ee? Really?" Yumi's eyes sparkled. "What's she like?"

Hitomi paused for a moment. "Just like… any other girl our age…" she described.

"Like… me?" Yumi wondered how. She thought Princess Isolde was not of the ordinary.

"People tend to miss out on that," Hitomi continued. "And… it hurts her most."

Hurts her most… Yumi remembered how it was before she had met her Onee-sama. Sachiko seemed so perfect from a distance. It was at that instant that Yumi had begun to love her. But upon meeting her, ending up being her soeur, it was then she realized that what she felt back then was merely out of the physical. There was more to her Onee-sama… and upon her continuous unraveling, Yumi has come to love her even more.

Perhaps… this, too, is what Princess Isolde experiences.

"Yumi-san…" Hitomi said.

Yumi turned to Hitomi.

"What was is it you said during lunch… about the amusement park?"

Yumi sighed as she remembered telling Hitomi that her Onee-sama had called off their half-day date to the amusement park. She had almost forgotten all about it. "Onee-sama needed to see someone."

"Someone…?"

Yumi sighed again.

"You know, Yumi-san... I haven't been to an amusement park before..." Hitomi said, buckling in her words. There was a slightly embarrassed look on her face.

* * *

_The old graduation photo seemed to remind her of someone._

_"That was her picture after graduating from Lillian University," Saiko said. _

_Sachiko observed the photo a little more. It was because of this person she had another excuse for postponing her date with Yumi for another weekend. Guilt plagued her system for this, and she did not want to disappoint Yumi again. However, she had no choice._

_But then, why is it that part of her seemed so fine about it?_

_"I am sorry to have made you postpone your date with Yumi," the old woman said. "But I need you to see someone about her." She was referring to the lady in the photo._

_"It's fine, Saiko-obaa-sama," Sachiko said. "I think Yumi will understand." Yumi will understand. She will have to understand again. Her conscience seemed to taunt her._

_"She was my late sister's only daughter," Saiko explained. "Like you… she was to marry a man her father had arranged. For this reason… she suddenly disappeared."_

_Sachiko put the photo down. The lady in it once suffered the same fate. She was not alone to experience feeling trapped. "Why do you tell me this, Saiko-obaa-sama? Is there something I should know?"_

_"I have kept this a secret for so long," Saiko answered. "I have been communicating with her while she hid in France. It went on for a number of years, even after her marriage…" She paused. "But then I had lost communication with her a few years after giving birth to her second child in another country."_

_"It's… no wonder why you never said anything about her," Sachiko said._

_"I found out she had died four years ago in Paris," Saiko continued. "But… I do not know where she rests." She paused, glancing at the photo. "There is someone I need you to go and see. She will be expecting you."_

_Sachiko glanced at her grandmother, then letting out a sigh. She was to see someone this weekend. She thought that it may have been scheduled very late. If someone had known about the whereabouts of that lady in the photo, why has she spoken about it only now? But as it goes… it was difficult to find a person who refuses to be found. She had gone now, and she emerged victorious… even after her passing._

_"Her children know not of their roots," Saiko said. "This is why I want you to go and bring them to me here."_

_"Yes, Saiko-obaa-sama," Sachiko said._

_The old woman nodded, now smiling._

Her grandmother passed on more than a month after mentioning the matter to Sachiko. This devastated Sachiko that she had almost forgotten everything her grandmother had told her. Even this.

Sachiko found herself left alone to do this. She did not want to forsake her grandmother's wish, and as her grandmother did not tell anyone of it, she decided not to as well… until the right time comes.

If Saiko-obaa-sama were still alive, perhaps… this was how she would approach it.

Sachiko picked up the photo again. The resemblance… Why is it that the answer seemed so close?


	5. Cinquieme

Eriko looked at the time. She still has ten minutes. She paused by the lamppost to catch her breath. She did not have to rush it after all. There was still time.

Hitomi agreed to go on a date with her. It was their first, and Eriko did not want to be the cause of anything that would ruin their time together. She was supposed to leave earlier, but her brothers had to get in the way. They knew what happened to Yamanobe-sensei. This ensued trouble. It was then Eriko decided to keep seeing Hitomi a secret… at least until she believes the time is right.

Eriko glanced around. It was then she noticed a tall girl standing beside the next lamppost. "Hitomi…?" she said, recognizing who it was.

Hitomi leaned against the lamppost. She was in a collared shirt and jeans as a pair of cross trainers clothed her feet. Her head tilted toward the ground, as if in deep thought. As if oblivious to the crowd going past her.

Eriko stood quietly, observing Hitomi from that distance. Hitomi dressed simply, but still, she seemed to distinguish herself from the crowd about them on that sidewalk. The different shade of character she had was what initially attracted Eriko. Aesthetic was the right word to it… and this was a petty reason. Eriko wanted to find out for herself… if she would still feel the same if she reached beyond aesthetics. And so far, her feelings have not failed her.

She looked at the time again. It was still early, but she decided to move toward Hitomi's direction.

The disturbing sound of a bus horn suddenly blared, followed by a loud screech of a troubled engine.

Eriko stopped half-way as the deafening sounds dazed her. She shifted her head. A bus. It was speeding toward her. Her heart rushed at the sight of it. She tried to move. But she seemed to have frozen on her tracks. She closed her eyes as her vision began to blur. She heard one scream after another drowning in the sound of the speeding vehicle. It was over.

Another loud screech sounded as a heavy crashing of glass, steel, and concrete shook the ground and drowned the rest of the noise on the main street. An equally-deafening moment of silence followed.

Sirens sounded one by one as smoke began to fill the air.

Sirens… Eriko could hear them. Alive? Yes, she was still alive. And she could feel a strange, yet comforting warmth of someone holding her. Her knees shook at the thought of surviving. So did the rest of her.

"Are you all right?"

That voice. Eriko recognized that voice. Hitomi. Hitomi was holding her. "H-Hitomi…" Eriko fumbled, weakly grasping Hitomi's tall frame as it shielded her. She was still shaking in fear. She was alive… Hitomi had saved her.

Hitomi stirred a little, letting out an inaudible sound.

Eriko broke from Hitomi, pushing her a little, and move away from the wall behind her. Hitomi's left shoulder. It was bleeding. "You're wounded," she said, quickly pressing her handkerchief on Hitomi's shoulder.

"Thank you…" Hitomi took the handkerchief from Eriko and pressed the injury on her own. She shifted a little. Something seemed to have caught her eye. "The press," she said and turned to Eriko. "We have to go."

"What?" Eriko said. "But you're wounded!"

"We have to leave," Hitomi said. There was fear in her eyes.

* * *

Sachiko sat quietly as she waited. 'So this is 8 Palais Drive,' she thought. This was the address given to her by the lady mysterious lady she had secretly been meeting over the past few weeks. Last weekend was the last time Sachiko would be seeing her.

Come to think, she did not even mention her name.

It was Sachiko's first time to go to Saint Anatole, and she has begun to have a fascination for the French-inspired community.

'Could Saiko-obaa-sama have known which place this address belonged?' she wondered. It was possible that her grandmother did not tell her everything. Her grandmother could have wanted her to know it on her own.

"8 Palais Drive" in Saint Anatole was the address of the Chantal, the official mansion of the Royal Family of France.

"The Enfant Royal Degare Ichiro is here to see, you, Mademoiselle," the tuxedo-clad man with a receding hairline and the one who had received her earlier, Guilbert, announced as he bowed.

The prince? The man Sachiko would be meeting was her cousin. 'Not now,' she thought, fighting her senses. She stood as the man in front of her stepped aside. A younger man in a white-collared shirt and slacks stepped up. He was very tall. His eyes were blue, like Suguru's and hers. His dark, wavy hair covered his ears. This was Degare Ichiro, Prince of France.

"Formalities are not needed," Degare said in a gentle voice, smiling warmly at Sachiko. "Please." He gestured Sachiko to sit and at the man to leave them.

"Thank you." Sachiko sat down again. As she did not wish for Guilbert to leave her with a cousin she has met just now, the prince somehow reminded her of how Suguru had been once.

"The Queen Mother asked me to meet you in her place," Degare said.

The Queen Mother of France… this was the person she was supposed to have met? Sachiko knew this was likely to happen, but still, she received it like a slight shock. And this slight shock… she knew it was only the beginning.

"You can call me Degare or Ichiro," the prince said. "Aki-chan calls me Onii-sama. You can call me that, too, if you wish." He was referring to his sister, the Crown Princess.

"Aki…chan…?" Sachiko stared nervously at the prince. He seemed so warm and friendly. There was nothing to be afraid of. Right. She did not have to feel uneasy. He was her cousin, after all.

"Mama used to call her that," the prince explained. "Soon, except Papa, the family has been accustomed to calling her. It's from Akira, Isolde's second name."

"I see," Sachiko said. Now that the prince has mentioned the Crown Princess, where is she?

"Tell me about yourself, Sachiko."

Tell Degare… what? Sachiko braced herself. This, she was definitely not good at.

* * *

Eriko's apartment smelled of disinfectant.

Hitomi looked around. This was Eriko's bedroom. She was on Eriko's bed. Eriko let her stay there as she had gone out along with the doctor that had attended to her earlier. Eriko had a strange way of approaching her, but she had been nice to her for unknown reasons. Hitomi stared at the folded garment on the table. The shirt she wore earlier. The accident had damaged it badly that Eriko told her earlier she would just get a new one for her. Hitomi sighed at this, turning her sight from the damaged garment. That shirt brought memories, both wanted and unwanted.

That collared green shirt was given to her by someone of her past. Alessa… that was her name. Alessa was part of a past she cherished as a child. But she, too, was part of a past Hitomi now wanted to forget.

She has no use for the shirt now. She felt it was time to let go of that dark patch in her head as well.

"You're the bandit who stole the place of the umbrella-maker? This is indeed a surprise…"

Bandit? Her? Hitomi turned to her right. The dark-haired lady in law school uniform… She was Rosa Chinensis before Sachiko, Mizuno Youko. Hitomi motioned to stand, but --

"No, it's fine," Youko said, gesturing Hitomi to stay put. "I see you already know who I am." She smiled, moving closer to Hitomi. "You're name is Sawada Hitomi, correct?"

Hitomi nodded.

"I've heard about you from Sachiko," Youko said. "You've been doing voluntary work at the Rose Mansion. That, I'm happy to hear."

"The Roses have been nice to me," Hitomi said. "To be of help to them is something I wish to do."

Youko stared at Hitomi for a moment.

Hitomi turned from Youko. Something in that stare made her feel very uneasy.

Youko sat beside Hitomi, quickly slipping off her bifocals. "What's this…?" she said, looking into Hitomi's eyes of dark gray. "Another Sachiko?"

"We're not related," Hitomi stressed.

"Really? You seem to have a closed mind toward this…" Youko said, handing back Hitomi's glasses.

"Closed… mind?" Hitomi uttered, cleaning her frames before putting them back on. Mizuno-san was right to say so. Being an alternate image of someone as admired as Rosa Chinenis was something she appreciated. However, it was not something she wished to live by. Wondering about it was not something she would find time for. Alongside thinking it was merely coincidental, her mind closed itself to the possibilities as to why they were often being identified with each other.

"There is more to one that meets the eye," Youko said. "I say this not merely because you and Sachiko bear striking similarities despite being from different places... I say this because I see something that links the two of you…" She placed her hand on Hitomi's head.

'Link…' Hitomi wondered as she felt Youko's hand off her head. She was not the type to ask. But upon hearing Youko's words, a little ray of light seemed to have peered through the closed windows of her mind.

Youko suddenly turned to the window and stood.

Hitomi watched Youko as she approached the window. She felt that Youko was thinking of something aside from what they had talked about earlier.

"Hitomi," Youko suddenly called Hitomi's attention. Her voice suddenly became serious. Then, she turned to Hitomi. "I need to tell you something."

Hitomi did not say a word. She stared back at Youko.

"Eriko is my friend," Youko said. "And I know her… more than anyone." She paused, turning again to the window. "She's interested in you."

'Interested? Me?' Hitomi thought. Though from a school that accepts both genders, this was not new… not because she has heard of it. She herself had been a frequent target of feminine affection in Mnemosyne. And this resumed in Lillian.

"What you did… shows your care for her."

"It was nothing," Hitomi said shyly.

"To you, right now, it meant nothing. But to Eriko… it meant differently." Youko then paused. "I'm telling you this because it might take longer for you to realize it."

Differently… Hitomi thought Eriko acted only out of kindness, since she was older.

"Once you've decided," Youko said. "Try not to make her wait too long."

Wait too long… Hitomi wondered what Youko had meant.

* * *

"Aki-chan asked for a normal life, that's why she is here," Degare explained, a picture frame in one hand. "Japan was one of the few places press would not look into." He paused, placing the frame back on its space among the organized rows of frames on top of the old fireplace. "And this was Mama's home."

"Did she tell you of her life here before coming to France?" Sachiko asked.

Degare shook his head. "Mama taught us the ways of the Japanese among other things, but we never asked her about why she left. Whenever she remembered, she became upset."

"It's understandable…" Yes. Sachiko knew why Degare and Isolde's mother did not say anything then. Her grandmother told her to tell them everything that had happened before escaping to France. But something in her mind seemed to tell her not to say anything about it at the moment. And so she kept silent.

Degare sighed meaningfully all of a sudden as he gazed at the large portrait of a youthful Queen Adelais. "It's difficult to be tied up with a responsibility you do not wish to have."

"It's true to say so," Sachiko said. "But somebody has to take it." The prince had earlier told her that he was originally next in line after the reigning ruler of France but had declined it for personal reasons. Sachiko believed this was a selfish thought. 'Men…' she thought. The prince was six years older than Isolde. For her, this should have gained him a little more experience by now to make him more qualified than the much younger Isolde. Isolde was a year younger than Sachiko, and Sachiko could understand the pressure she was feeling.

"The Queen Mother succeeded the throne when she was eighteen," Degare said. "France prospered under her rule for fifty-three years." He paused. "My father succeeded her at the age of thirty, and ruled France as well as she did..."

A knock suddenly interrupted their conversation.

Guilbert entered, bowing at the prince and Sachiko. "Your highness, Enfant Royal Isolde Akira has arrived."

"Tell her to come in, then," the prince said.

Guilbert bowed and headed out the door.

Princess Isolde has arrived. Sachiko thought pulse seemed to go a little faster. She tilted her head a little. If her guess is right, then --

"Pardon me for taking so long."

"Sachiko-onee is here, Aki-chan," the prince said.

Sachiko lifted her head. That voice. She turned to its direction and stood to her surprise. "Hitomi?"


	6. Sixieme

"Sawada Hitomi was my mother's name. Papa made me use her name for reasons I have yet to know."

Sachiko observed Isolde as she spoke. There was a certain sadness in her cousin's eyes. Isolde must have contained all those feelings for so long. Sachiko could not blame her for concealing her identity. It was her only defense against a public that would not seem to let her rest.

"And so you entered Lillian assuming your mother's name," she said.

Hitomi nodded.

"And the Head of the Academy…?"

"She knows everything," Isolde explained. "That I am the Crown Princess of France and that I used my mother's name when I entered Lillian."

"I see."

"You're not upset at me for dealing the way I did, are you?"

Sachiko shook her head, smiling. "I think… what you did was something I could have done if I were in your place. It's not wrong to think for yourself once in a while." She placed her hand on Isolde's shoulder. "I'll help you keep your secret for as long as you wish, Aki-chan," Sachiko said. She seemed to have felt something from beneath Isolde's shirt.

"Thank you… Sachiko-onee-sama."

"Eto…" Sachiko said. "Is there something wrong with your shoulder?"

"This?" Isolde touched her shoulder. "Just a little scratch."

"May I see it?"

Isolde unbuttoned her shirt halfway, slipping half of the garment that covered her dressed shoulder.

"A little scratch," Sachiko said, pausing while meticulously examining the dressing technique used on Isolde's injury. "It's not…" She placed the slipped half of the shirt back on Isolde's shoulder. "So you were there during the accident on the main street."

Isolde buttoned her shirt. "Guilbert must have told you I'd gone there."

"He did," Sachiko said. "Your brother, does he…? He didn't mention anything about it."

Isolde shook her head. "I didn't tell Onii-sama."

"Why not?"

Isolde feigned a smile at Sachiko.

Sachiko nodded. No words were needed to understand. Yumi and the others were right to say so. She and Isolde were alike in more ways than one.

"Sachiko-onee-sama…" Isolde said shyly. Then, there was a long pause. She turned to Sachiko. "…Thank you for coming here…"

Sachiko placed her hand on Isolde's head. Then, she smiled at Isolde.

"Anou… if may ask…" Isolde said, Sachiko's hand still on her head. "Yumi-san is special to you, isn't she?"

Isolde's question called Sachiko's attention. She moved her hand from Isolde's head as she sighed. Special? Yes, Yumi is special to her. She was her soeur, above all things. Why was Isolde asking? More correctly, what was Isolde thinking?

"Yumi-san looks up to you a lot," Isolde said. "At least… that's what she tells me." She paused. "I don't know how it is to have a grande soeur or a petite soeur, but I do know one thing. Yumi is the type who would wait… No matter how long."

Wait… Sachiko thought about what Isolde told her. Yumi was willing to wait for her. Wait… for what, exactly? She never bothered to ask herself that until someone else did. Why was Isolde telling her such things? Could it be that even she was guilty of the same fault?

"You can say I'm guilty of the same thing Sachiko-onee-sama," Isolde said. "And I have no right to tell you all these things, but… wouldn't it be such a shame to just sit and wait?"

* * *

"… Then, she picked up the dusty old violin. Sensei said it was flat and it sounded bad, but she played it like it wasn't. You should've seen it, Rei-chan!"

Dusty. Old. Violin. Play. Yoshino's regular pitch of raving. Somehow, Sachiko knew who Rosa Foetida en bouton was referring to.

"Really, now, Yoshino-chan," Rei said. "Since when did you get so interested into music?"

"Sensei found an old violin stored somewhere and took it to the music room," Yumi said. "She thought it would be useful, but it turned out that it had been treated badly that its quality was affected." She looked at Yoshino, who seemed to be still enchanted.

"So… what does it have to do with her?" Rei asked.

"Sensei asked Hitomi-san to play the violin," Yumi answered.

'Hitomi did…what?' Sachiko tapped her pen, frowning at the thought. Hitomi did despite her warning. The trademark stubbornness had been passed to Hitomi as well.

"Is that so…?" Rei said, sighing. "Why is it that I think she's beginning to sound like all the other girls?"

"I don't think it's wrong to admire Hitomi-san with what she does, Rosa Foetida," Shimako reasoned.

The others, except Sachiko, turned to Shimako with equally perplexed faces.

"Eto…" Sachiko finally spoke after listening to the discussion among the other Roses and the en boutons. "Rosa Gigantea does have a point."

The others turned to Sachiko with the same look on their faces.

"Hitomi entered Lillian to study," Sachiko explained. "If she exhibits anything out of the ordinary, it's because someone asked her to do it."

Shimako nodded in assent. "We should know this because we experience being stereotyped."

The Rose Mansion suddenly became quiet.

"Anou…" Yumi suddenly spoke up. "Where is Hitomi-san?"

"I gave her time off," Sachiko said.

"Time off?" Rei said. "You said we needed extra help here, and you give Hitomi a break. Did something go wrong?"

Sachiko shook her head. She was not to say anything about Hitomi's injury as part of their secret. It was something the both of them had agreed on until they believed it was all right. "She'll be back once she's ready."

"Ah, too bad," Yumi said, slumping to her seat. "Sei-sama, Eriko-sama, and Youko-sama said they would be coming today." She sighed. "I wanted to introduce her to them."

The others, including Sachiko, turned to Yumi with surprised faces.

Sachiko sighed. She, too, had completely forgotten they were coming.

_"Eriko isn't coming?"_

A familiar voice sounded from the door.

Sei-sama… Sachiko recognized that voice.

"You forgot, too, didn't you?" Rei whispered to Sachiko.

_"What do you mean a bandit took her? Stop being so cryptic!"_

* * *

The walk home had ended. Darkness was about to set.

"I'd… forgotten to thank you the last time," Eriko said, gripping Hitomi's hand tighter. She refused to let go. But she did.

Hitomi shook her head. "Please think nothing of it."

"I…" Eriko began. She wanted to tell Hitomi to stay a little longer with her. But… She then sighed. "Never mind," she said, shaking her head. "Until next time, then…"

Hitomi smiled and bowed. "I have to go now." She turned to leave.

Eriko suddenly grabbed hold of Hitomi's hand, tugging it.

Hitomi turned around.

Eriko quickly stepped forward, reaching to plant a kiss on Hitomi's cheek.

* * *

_**Rikka's note:**__ The next chapter might take a few days. Gomen ne for the delay. I'll get back once I'm relieved of my colds. Anyway, thanks for reading._


	7. Septieme

_What was I thinking?_

Eriko sighed. Her impulse had the best of her again that time. No, it was not what she was thinking. She was not thinking at all. She was not thinking when she pulled Hitomi and did in accordance with her impulse.

Two days have passed since she kissed Hitomi. Still, she could not bring the thought of it to rest… more so, as she would be walking with her again on the way home. On the way… home? Wait. She was to see Hitomi again after the incident? She hesitated at this. What if Hitomi avoided her? What if Hitomi no longer wanted to see her? What if…?

'This isn't fair,' Eriko thought, gripping her pen tightly, tipping it forcibly against the upper right corner of her textbook. 'Why do I have to think about these things?' She did not want to think about what she had done anymore. Impulse drove her to stop Hitomi to make her turn to her. Impulse drove her to take that step to reach out and kiss her.

Hitomi simply stood there after that. She said nothing. She did nothing. It was as if nothing happened. But… that look in Hitomi's eyes. What was it? There seemed to be confusion, fear… but what else was there? Something in those lonely gray eyes seemed to tell her to go further and reach into their beholder as they pierced through her soul.

'What is it you want, Hitomi… what?' Eriko thought, lifting her pen and beginning to scribble on top of the page. 'I must really be crazy… looking out for you like this… trying to reach you… wondering what you're thinking when I can't see you doing the same…'

Eriko lifted her pen. The scribble of characters read: Sawada Hitomi. 'Guess… I'll be seeing you later after all…'

"Torii-san," the instructor in front suddenly called. "Please read selection number three."

"Hai," Eriko blurted, lifting her head to the instructor's call.

* * *

_What were you thinking?_

Hitomi lightly placed her fingers on her cheek. 'Torii-san…' she thought, closing her eyes as the breeze brushed against her face. Eriko caught her just as she was not thinking about anything. And it happened all too fast.

Two days have passed since Eriko kissed her. Still, the images remained as vivid as they were that early evening. Like the images she captured on film. Her thoughts would not rest. She and Eriko were to meet again later. Meet again? Hitomi seemed to hesitate at this.

'This isn't fair,' Hitomi thought, letting putting her hand down and gripping the bench seat tightly. 'Why do I have to think about it so much?' She was not supposed to take the situation seriously. It was only a kiss on the cheek. It was not supposed to mean anything… was it?

Eriko's febrile warmth. The touch of her lips against Hitomi's cheek. The look in her eyes after. They seemed to reach Hitomi. They seemed to tell her something Eriko would not tell her. They seemed to have captured her.

'What is it you want, Torii-san… what?' Hitomi thought, sighing as she lifted her head to the sky. 'Things are different now… but… just how ready am I? She wouldn't tell me. But why is it… I'm always here? I'm always ready to go with her… to do as she wishes. My heart is at its surrender when it comes to her…' She reached for her shoulder, pressing lightly the wrapped injury beneath her dark uniform. 'Am I… going mad?'

Hitomi tilted her head toward the ground. 'Torii Eriko-san,' she thought, Eriko's smile flashing in her mind. Heart skipping a beat, she sighed. 'It seems… I will be seeing you again later after all.'

"Hitomi-san…"

Hitomi lifted her head again as she noticed a shadow had blocked her light. Rosa Gigantea. She had managed to find her here.

"Someone else was sitting on your usual place," Shimako said, sitting beside Hitomi.

"Were you looking for me?" Hitomi asked. "I must have tired you…"

Shimako shook her head. "You weren't far," she answered. "It wasn't hard to find you."

Hitomi smiled shyly at Shimako. That disposition and that answer, she could see and hear Alessa. 'Alessa…' Hitomi thought. She has recovered, yet she could still not forget.

"Rosa Chinensis gave you time off, didn't she?" Shimako asked.

Hitomi nodded.

"Did something happen?"

Hitomi shook her head. She was not to let anyone know about her injury or about the secret she shared with Sachiko.

"Those letters…" Shimako said. "…You threw them."

Hitomi turned to Shimako. She thought someone else had seen her that time. It had been Rosa Gigantea all along. "So you were the one who saw me."

Shimako nodded. "I volunteered to look for you. When I finally found you and Yumi-san, you were gathering the letters in your locker."

Hitomi did not say a word.

"May I ask why you did it?"

"I didn't have reason to read any of them," Hitomi answered.

"Eto…" Shimako reasoned. "I don't think anyone needs a reason to do so. Many students admire you, Hitomi-san."

"I'm appreciative of it, Rosa Gigantea," Hitomi said. "But you see… I may find it difficult to deal equally with the girls who wrote them … even if I may not know all of them personally." She paused for a moment. "I'm not special, and I don't think that much attention is --"

"That's not true," Shimako opposed, shaking her head. She looked into Hitomi's eyes for a moment. Then, she turned from Hitomi and tilted her head, holding her silence for another moment.

"Rosa Gigantea --"

"Please return to the Rose Mansion soon," Shimako said flatly, despite the gentleness still present in her voice. "I need to go. I remembered I have something else to do. Excuse me." She did not turn nor spare a passing glance at Hitomi as she said so. Then, she stood from her the bench and began to walk away. Faster. Faster until she began to run.

"Rosa Gigantea," Hitomi stood, calling in her effort to stop Shimako. But Shimako would not seem to hear her at all. And so, Hitomi watched Shimako move farther away from her, wondering why Shimako had acted that way and wondering where she herself had gone wrong.

* * *

The weeks have passed quietly. Ever since the last statement the Presse Royal has released about the Crown Princess' whereabouts, King Jean Aimeri has had not much to worry about.

Or so it seemed.

The king laid the white sheets in his hands on the table. The results. This was another issue he has to deal with. But unlike Isolde's, this, he cannot deny.

Presse Associée would do anything to look into the lives of the Famille Royal de la France. And up to an extent nobody can measure will they go, not minding if their actions would aid or destroy.

The king reclined on his chair.

'_You cannot continue on without telling your children why.'_

Degare was first to be asked to assume the throne, that of which he rejected for reasons the king did not know. But the king believed it was not because the people favored the younger, more aloof Isolde.

'_Isolde is too young to be asked this, Jean Aimeri. Do not force her.'_

His mother's words. Isolde was only twelve when the king had asked her in place of her brother, Degare. The king knew his mother's experiences of being Queen at a very young age. This was enough reason for her to say such. True enough, Isolde was young. Her heart, too, was not set toward the throne. But he believed that Isolde simply needed time to reconsider.

'_I believe you daughter would make a good ruler one day. All she needs is time…'_

This was what Alessa had said before she disappeared. Alessa was Isolde's childhood friend, the one to have seen her grow up from Chinatown to Paris and the one to know her more than any of her friends or family. But the king believed, too, that with Degare, she was the reason Isolde had become what she is now. More aloof. More withdrawn. More impassive.

'_Please let me figure out for myself, Papa…'_

Isolde has not said yes or no to her father's question… whether or not she will take the throne. She simply asked him to grant her the time to figure out. Figure out what exactly? The king granted her wish without further question, believing that Isolde would not forsake a seat that will soon be vacated.

'_The throne is in need of an heir, yes, this holds true. However, at your approach toward things, the throne will need its heir sooner than we all think…'_

The king picked up the white sheets, scanning them again. There was no telling how long. There was no telling how short. There was no telling what would happen next. The king wished there were an escape to this sentence.

A knock.

"Come in," the king said, cutting away from his thoughts as he put the sheets into the drawer on his left.

Aveline entered and bowed before the king. "Docteur Frank has arrived, your highness."

"Send him in, then, Aveline," the king said. "And… do close the door after his entry."

Hitomi walked on, eyes focused on the gate ahead. Eriko should be there behind it by now, just as scheduled. She would be waiting for her there.

Hitomi had thought about the possibilities. What Eriko might say. What Eriko might do. How Eriko might take the situation. How Eriko might deal with her. And she realized that regardless of all these possibilities, she will still see Eriko. This, she has decided.

She stepped out of the gate. She looked to the spot Eriko usually waited.

Eriko was not there.

Hitomi sighed, tilting her head. It seemed Eriko will not be seeing her today. Perhaps she could too busy to see her. Perhaps she could be running a little late. Or… perhaps, she would not want to see her anymore after what had happened. 'This is it, I suppose…' Hitomi thought. She glanced at her watch and decided to walk home on her own.

"Hitomi…" a voice suddenly called from behind.

Hitomi stopped but did not turn. Eriko's voice… she could recognize it from anywhere. Eriko? She is here? No. She believed her mind was only playing tricks on her. She took one step forward.

"You didn't think I'd let you go like just like that, did you?"

There it went again. Hitomi still could not believe it. It was then she felt something touch her hand. The burning warmth soon surrounded her arm, her palm, and her and fingers… That firm grasp. That light tug of assurance. Hitomi realized she was not dreaming. She turned to her side. Eriko. Yes, Eriko is here with her. She did come after all.

Eriko turned to Hitomi, smiling. "Shall we go?"

Hitomi nodded. That smile on Eriko's face… It was exactly as she pictured it.

* * *

_**Rikka's Note: **I managed to come up with Chapter 7 sooner. But that doesn't mean my bout with the colds is over. I still have a long way to go. Anyway, if you'd like to see further notes on this fanfic, please go to: hakujou-rikka./. Thanks for reading, everyone._


	8. Huitieme

Eriko tugged Hitomi's sleeve.

"You're heavy," Hitomi said half-jestingly as she turned to Eriko.

"You're quiet again…" Eriko complained.

Hitomi sighed. She and Eriko had talked about this already. She promised not to think too much whenever they were together. But it seems she could not help it.

That call started her web of thoughts.

Aveline called her this morning to inform her of the Presse Royal's release of her photographs on selected publications, one of which circulated in Japan. Her father and the Presse Royal, again, did not inform her beforehand and ask her.

Delayed or late announcements such as these worried Hitomi.

"Hitomi…" Eriko complained again.

"I'm sorry," Hitomi said. "I didn't mean to…"

"You're always like this, Hitomi," Eriko said, sighing. "But it's not your fault… I'm just being too impatient again."

Impatient? Torii-san? Hitomi did not seem to want to hear that from Eriko. Youko had told her not to make Eriko wait too long. And so she did what she believed would not make Eriko wait too long as she did what she believed would make Eriko happy. But still…

"Am I making you wait too much?" Hitomi asked, glancing at Eriko.

Eriko shook her head, releasing Hitomi's arm. "It's fine like this, Hitomi. I only wanted you to talk."

"Talk…?"

"About yourself, what you're going through… anything."

"Anything…" Hitomi wondered. 'What falls under anything,' she wondered. She could not tell Eriko anything about herself or what she was going through. Well… at least, not yet.

"Or," Eriko said. "You can ask me."

"Ask you..." Hitomi repeated. She was not the person who would ask.

"We've been seeing each almost everyday, Hitomi," Eriko said. "I've been asking you about yourself, what you do or so, but..." She paused, then continued in a rather soft, saddened tone. "…It seems you never ask me anything."

Hitomi kept silent for a moment, thinking about what she could ask Eriko. But her mind seemed to generate too much thought. Too much cluttered, muddled, incoherent thoughts… She sighed to her dismay. It seems she could not do as Eriko wished.

"I have so much to ask, to be honest," she said. "It's just that…"

"Just that…?"

Hitomi glanced to the sky above them. "I didn't feel the need to ask," she continued. "I'm fine with this…"

"Fine with what, exactly…?"

The two suddenly pass by a bookstore. Two girls in Lillian uniform exit it, each carrying with her a small bag of paper.

They noticed Hitomi and Eriko. They stared at Hitomi, expressions on their faces as if speechless.

Hitomi started to feel uneasy. She did not like people looking at her like so.

The girls bowed. "S-Sawada-sempai," they chorused nervously.

"It's nice to see you out here," the one on the left said the edginess still in her voice.

Hitomi sensed the equal exchange of uneasiness toward her. Princess or not, she still made other people uncomfortable.

She noticed the same thing inside the paper bags. It was then she remembered what Aveline had told her what would happen this afternoon. 'The magazine…' she thought, suddenly starting to feel even more uneasy. She smiled, pushing her glasses, and said. "On your way home as well, I see…"

"We were going home," the girl on the right said. "But we saw something at the bookstore window."

The other girl nodded. "A-anyway, we have to go." With the other girl, she bowed and hurriedly left.

Hitomi shrugged, sighing. She turned to the store window and read the red and blue banner on top. The same publication Aveline told her about has just released its latest issue -- with the feature of the Crown Princess.

"Princess Isolde is on the cover," Eriko said. "Makes sense."

"Her… highness," Hitomi uttered. She glanced at Eriko -- she, too, was looking through the glass… except, she seemed to be looking at something else. This did not surprise Hitomi as she knew Eriko's eccentricity would likely exhibit disinterest toward popular choices.

"Looking for something?" Hitomi asked.

Eriko shook her head. "I thought you were."

"No." Hitomi shook her head.

"Let's go, then," Eriko said, grasping Hitomi's hand.

The two resumed walking. Hand in hand. Silent as they took one step after the other.

"Princess Isolde is quite the charmer, isn't she?" Eriko suddenly remarked. "Even my schoolmates talk about her."

Charmer? Her? Was Eriko not spared from the hype? Perhaps… Eriko was only jesting. Hitomi giggled in response.

"They say one pastime in France is watching the Royal Family," Eriko said. "It seems the wave has reached other places."

"Princess Isolde and Prince Degare were born of a Japanese mother and a French father, the King of France at that," Hitomi said. "I suppose that justifies why the wave reached here."

"Japanese mother…" Eriko repeated in a rather curious tone. "I haven't heard that yet."

"King Jean Aimeri married a Japanese woman over two decades ago," Hitomi said. "She was not French. She was not of any aristocratic lineage. But somehow… the people found their interest in the king's family." She paused, looking to the orange and yellowing sky and back. The memories and the growing impact toward her and her brother crossed her mind. "They found interest in the Prince Degare, but their eyes were set most on the Crown Princess," she resumed.

"I can see that," Eriko said, glancing at Hitomi. "That must make her uncomfortable."

"Uncomfortable…" Hitomi said. Eriko was right to say that.

"Some find admiration flattering," Eriko said. "But… sometimes, it can be bothersome that it becomes uncomfortable. But… perhaps this is only part of how Princess Isolde feels."

Part of how Princess Isolde feels… Eriko did not know the princess in any way. How could she…? Hitomi wondered at this.

"Men are made to choose and search for themselves," Eriko said. "If Princess Isolde is deprived of this and the understanding she wished to be spared with, then… perhaps this is why she left."

Eriko. Hitomi tilted her head. Eriko's voice seemed to speak for her. She was right to say so. It was at that Hitomi felt her heart open.

"The throne claims its right to chain its heirs to it," Hitomi said. "Yet… to be there is not merely out of choice or coercion… but out of one's sincere assent to responsibility."

"Eto…" Eriko said, pausing for a moment. "…Even if I don't know much about Princess Isolde, I think her future rests on the throne…" She paused again, glancing at the sky. "Somehow… I can tell."

* * *

"Aiee…" Yumi complained. "So bothersome!" She stretched.

"Bothersome…?" Shimako said quizically, turning to Yumi.

Yumi huffed. Her Onee-sama would not be going home with her again. Bothersome indeed. "I wonder what Onee-sama is up to?"

"Rosa Chinensis seldom says what she is up to, Yumi-san," Shimako said. "You should be used to it by now."

"So unfair…" Yumi complained, a slightly exasperated expression forming on her face. Her Onee-sama had a way with hiding things. Yumi was likely to be drawn to take a guess at one of them or so. But it was more likely that the right answer ends up finding her rather than the other way around. "Why can't she tell me?" she asked. Her Onee-sama was not one who would to talk. Yumi felt she did all the thinking while her Onee-sama seemed to make her keep guessing. So unfair indeed.

"Have you tried asking her?"

Asking? Yumi sighed at the thought of it. True, it was easier than guessing, but… who was Rosa Gigantea kidding?

"Your face says asking isn't of any help, either."

"Is there any way to put it?" Yumi said, then opting to put the hopeless topic to an end. She suddenly thought about Hitomi's return after days of rest, as her Onee-sama recommended. Yumi had been busy that day that she never had the chance to ask Hitomi. The Rose Mansion and class hours were the only times Yumi would see Hitomi as even she had other activities to attend to. Hitomi has become popular at a short span of time that even if the Photography Club and Kyudo Club were the only clubs she enlisted herself in, she was asked to help in other clubs. Hence, those days of rest went on until they ceased to be.

She asked Hitomi to play the violin before leaving the Music Room. She played it with skill… just as always. Yumi admired Hitomi at this among other things the silent girl excelled in.

Hitomi reminded her so much of her Onee-sama in more ways than one. But then… as Hitomi had told her, she and Sachiko were not related.

"You're quiet all of a sudden, Yumi-san," Shimako said.

"Oh, it's nothing," Yumi said, rather embarrassed. "Hitomi-san plays the violin well, don't you think?"

"Yes," Shimako nodded. A sad expression seemed to sneak out of her face upon hearing so. But Yumi paid no attention to it as she was looking ahead.

"Hitomi-san is intelligent, gentle, talented," Yumi said. "She would have made a good soeur." She sighed. "I wish she could have transferred to Lillian earlier."

"They all say that…" Shimako said.

"She managed to find time to go to the Rose Mansion," Yumi said. "She has been busy, that it's hard to catch up with her."

Shimako kept her silence. It seemed as if she were bothered by something.

"She gets along with Onee-sama well," Yumi said. "But… she seems comfortable with you…"

Shimako suddenly stopped. Her face turned pale as she stared blankly toward the ground.

Stopping as well, Yumi turned to Shimako and wondered why she had stopped. The expression on Shimako's face as it focused toward the ground… Yumi recognized it as well as the heaviness the air seemed to tell her. What could be wrong?

"Anou…" Shimako said, head still tilted. "… I have to go somewhere, Yumi-san… I'm sorry. I forgot to tell you. Please excuse me." She bowed, hurriedly turning around to leave.

"Rosa Gigantea…?" was all Yumi could say. It seemed she could not say anything else but that. 'What… happened? Did I… say something…?' she blankly asked herself and watched Shimako move faster and farther away from her. Shimako's actions made Yumi perplexed and speechless, as she had been left to walk home alone. Again.

* * *

_**Rikka's Note: **My colds are gone, but I have to lay off on the fanfic a little to focus on other things, school, projects, etc. I have a lot to catch up on, but not to worry. I'll try to write at a good pace. The sequel might slip out of my head, you see… ; _


	9. Neuvieme

On the front page of the magazine was a clear, close-up, candid image of a teenage girl. On her head was tidily-kept bistre hair that barely touched her shoulders. Behind frames and set on a cold, blank were expressive eyes of midnight blue that focused toward the unknown. Printed in red ink and set on the right, the capped letters vertically read: EXCLUSIVE: RUNAWAY PRINCESS. A subtext followed on the left: One-page feature on La Enfant Royal de Couronne de la France Isolde Akira.

"Isolde… Akira…" Eriko uttered, eyes still fixed toward the image on the magazine. That was the name of the girl on the magazine. Isolde Akira. Princess Isolde Akira. She was next in line to the throne. Yes… of course. This name was not new to Eriko. She has known this for a fact as she had been to France for a number of times. But it was her first time to see Princess Isolde this up close in a photo.

_'The throne claims its right to chain its heirs to it…'_

A voice suddenly interrupted Eriko's thoughts. Hitomi. She held her stare at the cover and kept her silence. That afternoon… Hitomi sounded as if she… No. It could not be possible. But if it could not possible at all, why is it that…? Something seemed to bother her at this.

"She seems the part," Youko remarked. "Don't you think so?"

Eriko simply stared at the cover. She did not hear Youko's voice at all. Her thoughts seemed to weigh too much in her head, true enough. However, as she was bothered, it seemed as if she was continuously being drawn to the image. And that she had no other choice but to become under its spell. With this, her attention had become solid.

"Eriko," Youko called Eriko's to shatter frozen attention. Her voice seemed stern.

Eriko finally lifted her eyes from the magazine Youko had brought to her earlier.

"Is something wrong?"

Eriko shook her head. True, there was something wrong. And she could not deny this to Youko. Even if she said there was nothing wrong.

"There is." Youko took the magazine from Eriko and sat beside her.

"My thoughts can travel far, Youko," Eriko said, smiling nonchalantly. "If I saw something about it earlier, it's nothing to be taken too seriously."

"If you say so," Youko said. "You called and said you wanted to see the latest on Princess Isolde. I didn't think she'd cause that impact on you."

"I hear talks about her," Eriko said. "My classmates seem to be in the know so much about her that I seem to get left behind."

"Really?" Youko giggled as well. "I'm surprised you wanted to be in the know as well."

Eriko shook her head. "Princess Isolde is admired by both men and women. Not for me, I suppose."

"You say you still won't go for the popular choice," Youko looked to observe the princess' image. "Somehow, I feel it's not the case."

Eriko said nothing. Youko knew her well… too well that even if she said so, her friend would be quick to point otherwise.

"Sachiko's clones must have been from a laboratory or a base camp in France, don't you think so?" Youko jested.

Eriko giggled, letting go of her previous thought. "Princess Isolde does resemble Sachiko," she said. Princess Isolde's resemblance to Sachiko and Hitomi was obvious at that. But it was not for that reason she had felt that way earlier. If she harbored interest in those who resembled Sachiko, she would have had those feelings for Sachiko a long time ago. Perhaps she would even have chosen her as petite soeur ahead of Youko.

"Speaking of Sachiko's clones," Youko said. "How is the bandit?"

"Hitomi…" Eriko tilted her head and stood, presence gliding toward the window. She placed her hand against the pane and sighed. She could not seem to answer Youko.

"The time she came… don't you think it's odd?"

"Lillian must have been convinced to take her in," Eriko said. "She came from France, after all."

"Knowing the Head of the Academy, Hitomi would have had deeper reasons."

"If Hitomi has reasons other than being from France," Eriko said. "Unless she says something, it's not an issue we should concern ourselves with, don't you think?" Youko's words seemed convincing enough to lure her. True, Hitomi's transfer to Lillian was an unlikely case, but as Eriko promised herself, she would not be impatient. She would not be impulsive. She would not be reckless. She would be mature enough to handle her relationship with Hitomi. Therefore, she would not choose to involve herself with Hitomi's personal issues. She would wait for Hitomi to tell her.

"Is that all?" Youko asked, sounding slightly displeased.

"I won't involve myself, Youko," Eriko said briefly, composedly.

Youko sighed upon Eriko's words. "I don't know exactly what it is you're thinking, but I do know…" she said. "… That even if you are treating her differently from the way you did to Yamanobe-sensei, your interest grows deeper."

"I don't think she wants to give it back," Eriko said.

"Does she not want to give back what, if I may ask?" Youko asked, voice shifting as if to tease.

Eriko sighed heavily.

"That's because you don't want her to," Youko reasoned, giggling. She paused for a moment, the smirk disappearing from her face. "You're willing to wait that much for her?"

"I'll wait for her no matter how long," Eriko answered, stressing forthrightly.

"But if she rejects you…?"

"Upon your assessment… do you think so?" Eriko asked calmly. She worries about this, but… somehow she could not seem to see it happening.

Youko huffed in response. "Eriko…" she said sternly, eyes on the magazine. "It's not surprising for you to take interest upon people you barely know. But… how sure are you about your feelings for Hitomi?"

Eriko turned to Youko. Her closest friend seemed to question her feelings. This hurt her, but Youko spoke the truth. Eriko took interest on people of a lesser choice but ceased to like them after knowing them beyond impression. Hitomi spoke only if she were asked. Most of the time, she spoke sparingly. It was rare that she spoke profusely. But even so, Eriko felt as if she already knew Hitomi's character well. And to her, this seemed enough.

* * *

Sachiko stared at the Isolde's image on the magazine cover. As Isolde, her cousin had dark hair and blue eyes just like her. As Hitomi, she had a lighter shade of hair and gray eyes. It was not the first time Sachiko has seen her cousin wearing her natural colors, but she has been more accustomed to seeing Isolde in altered shades. "So this is you," she said. She put the magazine down to look at Isolde, who was sitting just across her.

Isolde giggled, pushing her eyeglasses. "That was me." The dark, oval pair of frames has been replaced by titanium, rectangular, slightly round-edged ones. The neatly-kept hair was now a boyish, shaggy mess down to her shoulders. She had earlier washed the tint from her hair and removed the lenses that disguised the natural hue of her eyes.

"That hair of yours on the cover…" Sachiko remarked in an odd tone. It was not only the hair that she found unfit. Indeed, her cousin is a princess. To be more specific, Isolde is heir to the throne, the Crown Princess. Isolde was to appear just as so. But then to Sachiko, Isolde's appearance in the photo did not seem to suit her at all. Here, Isolde seemed stiff. Pedantic. Superior. Too prim and proper that it seemed she has followed every little standard that has been fed to her. It was a similar image Sachiko admitted she was guilty of projecting. But as Isolde knew her, she knew Isolde -- simple, diffident, though still aloof and refined. Could it be that her cousin, too, had been putting up an act all along to please others? It was evident enough to say so. But Sachiko wanted to ask.

"That photo was taken before I was gashed on the forehead."

"Gashed…?"

Isolde pushed the hair that covered her forehead aside, showing a gash that was now a scar.

"Oh," Sachiko examined the scar. It was her first time to see it. The modern world has thought of ways to remove it. Why did Isolde have to keep it?

"I got it from a fencing accident." Isolde said, covering the scar once more.

"Fencing accident… I see," Sachiko said. She remembered Isolde is a practitioner of fencing. "Eto… you have masks to protect yourselves. What happened?"

Isolde tilted her head, sighing as she kept her silence.

Sachiko recognized that sigh. Hers would sound so similarly. She reached to tap her cousin's shoulder. The heaviness in her cousin's sighing seemed to tell her not to ask further. "I'll listen once you're ready."

Isolde nodded but did not say a word.

"Rather tousled, but this hair looks better on you," Sachiko said, smiling after opting to change the topic, and pat Isolde's head. "This shade or the other…" She remembered what else she needed to discuss with Isolde.

Isolde smiled shyly.

"Though… I do think Eriko-sama would prefer you having your eyes in their natural color."

* * *

_'Rosa Gigantea, wait!'_

Shimako sighed to her regret toward her actions earlier that day. She did not want to run away. But it seemed she felt cornered as she and Hitomi were the only ones left in the Rose Mansion. 'I didn't want to run away from you,' she thought to herself.

Hitomi was intelligent, gentle, talented... Surely anyone would admire someone like her. Surely anyone would want to meet her or be friends with her. Surely anyone would…

Shimako sighed at her thoughts. What was she thinking? No. No, that was not it at all. She did not wish to be misinterpreted through her recent course of actions toward Hitomi. But recalling what she had done, how she had reacted…

"Pretty cold out here, isn't it?"

Shimako turned around. "Otou-san…"

The Chief Priest of Shoguu Temple approached to stand beside Shimako. He lifted his head toward the starless sky. "There are no stars out tonight," he said.

Shimako tilted her head toward the wooden floor. It was not the absence of stars she was thinking of or the night sky above her and her father.

"Akira used to do this," the Chief Priest said, still looking to the dark, cloudy sky. "On the roof, looking to the sky, starless or not. So quiet. Makes you wonder what she is thinking."

Akira… Yes, Shimako remembered her. Slightly younger. Eyes as blue as the starless night sky above. Hair as dark as burnt beech wood. Expression so gentle yet so firm.

Akira and her mother arrived one significant summer of Shimako's childhood. As her mother was friendly and sociable, Akira was aloof and quiet, spending moments alone by the pond, on the roof during evenings, or somewhere not too far from sight with her camera, or playing the violin, if not busy with her lessons. She did not attend regular school unlike Shimako. Instead, she had tutors that came in on weekday mornings, and a personal Kyudo coach on Saturday mornings. She was strange, yes. But she was always there to extend a hand to Shimako. To listen. To stand by her. And at that, Akira and Shimako managed to arrive at an understanding, an unspoken understanding. Friendship… the right word to say of it? Neither of them had confirmed this. But as children, there was no need to hear any words at all.

The year came and went quickly, and summer fell again. Akira and her mother had to leave… never to be seen or heard from again. Shimako wished to know why they came all so sudden and why they left the same way, but her questions were never answered. Akira never said goodbye. Shimako felt the memory lighten its load from her as time passed. It was a childhood memory, meant to be forgotten at some point. It had long been over, but… somehow, somewhere within her, she still found that thorn pierced through her chest. After all these years… it never seemed to have left at all.

"I wonder how Ricco is doing?" the Chief Priest said, chuckling.

Ricco. Shimako giggled for a moment. Yes, who could forget Ricco? She sighed as her previous thoughts entered her head once more. "Otou-san…" she said. "You knew Akira was a princess, didn't you?"

The Chief Priest shifted his stare to the wooden floor and sighed. Then, he nodded.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

The Chief Priest sighed, focusing away from the sky. "Because I was afraid you might treat her indifferently because of it."

Shimako shook her head. No, this was not true. "I loved Akira because she is her, Otou-san…" she said.

"I knew that one day it would have to come to this," the Chief Priest said. "The weight of the crown can be too heavy for a youthful head to bear."

Shimako agreed with her father's words. As she had known Akira, she knew it was not something Akira would likely take. She believed this reason justified Akira's recent actions.

"I feel her presence," the Chief Priest said. "She is not far…" Upon saying this, he turned around and headed back inside.


	10. Dixieme

The night has fallen deeper. It was quiet. The lights from below have gone out one by one. The moon finally hid itself behind the shadowy clouds.

Still, the sky remained starless.

Shimako sighed, finally deciding to retire after a fruitless wait for at least one twinkling fragment to appear, to shine below the dark space from where she waited. She stood and stretched a little, taking one last look at the empty sky above her before turning around to head back inside.

_…She is not far…_

Her father's words crossed her mind as she entered and walked to her room. Her father was not the enigmatic type, as she had known him. For him to say such things, about feeling Akira's presence, about suddenly mentioning her after all those years of silence… was not likely. Akira… not far? How could her father have known this? Why? Shimako thought if her father had known more about Akira's sudden disappearance than anyone around them. He was a good friend of the Queen, and he had kept hers and her daughter's stay in the Shoguu Temple for so long.

Speaking of the late Queen… what was her name? Shimako stopped walking. Come to think, Shimako never knew her name. But it has been years. The summers have come and gone. Shimako felt no need to look back upon this. If Akira would come back, Shimako did not have to feel anything else. There was no need to make anything of it.

Akira's absence suddenly became so strongly felt upon the report of her disappearance. It was normal for, not only France, but the rest of the world to react the way it did toward it. Akira was the throne's apparent heir after Prince Degare declined to succeed King Jean Aimeri. Shimako understood Akira at that. True, the crown can be heavy for the youthful head to bear. The world's sway in favor of Akira served as Shimako's alibi to feel for her even for a little while.

Days later, Hitomi came. Sawada Hitomi. The peculiar girl from France who mirrored Sachiko in more ways than one. Shimako thought having her at such an unlikely time was a stroke of luck for Lillian as Hitomi was a younger, "gentler" copy of Rosa Chinensis. She felt comfortable being with Hitomi as much as Hitomi seemed comfortable with her. Something seemed to have formed in-between them. Shimako did not deny so, as everyone else in the Rose Mansion had been very vocal about it. It was fine.

Until that day…

Her eyes met Hitomi's. Shimako felt something respond within her, like an impulse. She suddenly saw Akira. This signaled her defense. It prompted her to move away… And to still keep moving away everytime they would meet. Everytime they were alone.

Looking into those eyes… it was a mistake. Akira is not Hitomi. Hitomi is not Akira. There is no reason to suspect Hitomi's identity. There is no reason to suspect Akira's whereabouts. There is no reason to identify one with the other. There was never any reason to carry those feelings at all.

Shimako resumed wandering about the dimly-lit hall. There was no need to make anything of Akira and the memory she had left her. She did not have to think about them anymore. She has hurt Hitomi because of the hurt Akira had left her.

She will clear everything with Hitomi the moment she has the chance. This, she said to herself as she gently closed the door.

* * *

Aveline did not call this evening. She will not call tomorrow. She will not call the day after it. Aveline will not call for a week or perhaps longer than that. This was a strict instruction given to her by the King of France. Isolde was relieved to have heard this earlier. She would be at peace until the next phone call.

But… why is it that she could not sleep?

Isolde looked to her right as she sat on the edge of her spacious bed of cream sheets. A brown stuffed bear in a knitted, yellow vest over a white shirt was there in front of white pillows. Round, black buttons as eyes stared blankly as a hidden smile was sewn underneath its snout. Its furry and bulky figure hunched as it sat.

As a child, Isolde treated it as any other child with a stuffed animal would, but unlike them, she never seemed to have outgrown it. Inanimate as it was, it has been her companion for as far as she could remember. It listened to her, whatever she had in mind but did not wish to share to others. It witnessed, whatever she did or decided to do that others should not know or should not see. It shared with her, all those moments when no one else would. It was her keeper of secrets.

Isolde turned from the stuffed bear and stared at the carpeted floor beneath her. It was then her Sachiko-onee-sama's words entered her head.

'_I knew. I was waiting for you to tell me.'_

Sachiko had told Isolde that she knew for a time now, about her and Eriko seeing each other. That Eriko was serious. And that the reason Isolde came home injured the night she and Sachiko met in the Chantal was out of protecting Eriko. Youko mentioned Eriko and Isolde, as Hitomi, to Sachiko but told her not to say anything until the right moment came. And earlier that evening was that right moment.

As Hitomi, Isolde and Eriko reached an unspoken understanding that neither of them was to open herself or voluntarily speak about having met each other. Isolde was aware that Youko might say something later on, but she did not worry too much about it. She believed Youko did so as she treated Sachiko as her own even after graduating from Lillian.

And… Isolde trusted Sachiko.

'_Eriko-sama can become reckless, impulsive, and impatient out of interest…'_

Isolde already knew that. Youko had told her. She had told Isolde about Eriko and her eccentricity and unlikely fondness toward her.

'_But with you… she manages to be herself.'_

Be herself…? Eriko-san? Sachiko had it partly correct. Eriko may be herself, but it was not always that way. A hinting approach? A self-controlled approach that needed to let off steam once in a while? Both? Either? Neither? Or is the Torii-san Isolde has come to know the real Torii Eriko… the real person behind the mask? This confused her.

'_Look after her.'_

"Look… after… her…" Isolde said gradually, halting after every word. Sachiko told her to look after Eriko. Strange. Isolde thought Eriko was the one who has always looked after her, as Hitomi, since the day she came to Lillian. Eriko was always there to wait for her, to walk by her, to keep her company.

Sitting on a bench was not what Isolde would usually do back in Mnemosyne, even before her father declared her as his daughter before the French public. She would go somewhere else, the rooftop or somewhere people would rarely pass. Not stay at one of the benches along the concrete walk where there was a greater probability someone would walk by her. But Isolde found herself sitting on that bench, involuntarily leaving a space on her right… as if someone would come.

And someone did come.

Isolde stared at the stuffed bear again, taking it from the space where it sat, and placed it on her lap. She stared at the soft, furry plaything, which never failed to share its blank stare and smile with her during thinking moments such as these. "Was I expecting her?" she asked, smiling back at the inanimate friend in her hands. "It is strange, Ricco, how we met, how we got together... how we got to this…"

She brought Ricco to her. She always took notice of the shade of brown of Ricco's synthetic fur, and she always ended up saying the same, "Your fur…" She patted its head, still smiling. "…reminds me."

'_You like her. You don't need to tell me.'_

Isolde heard Sachiko's words in her head once more. "Torii-san likes me as Hitomi," she said to Ricco. "Not as Isolde Akira. Not as the Crown Princess of France. Not as myself… I made it too complicated for my own defense." She paused, staring at Ricco for a moment, her eyes blue as midnight meeting the pair of black buttons for eyes on the teddy bear's face. Ricco's unresponsiveness was apparent, as it was inanimate, but like any typical conversation Isolde would have with it, it seemed to help her.

"I'm afraid to tell Torii-san the truth, Ricco… more than afraid to tell her than I am afraid to tell Shimako…" She paused, sighing. "I've become responsive to Torii-san, and… I fear failing her." She stared at Ricco again before placing it back in its place. She stood from the bed. She headed toward the glass door ahead and opened it. She entered the balcony, holding her stare at the empty view above.

* * *

A trail of white suddenly shot across the starless heavens.

A sigh. A very deep sigh.

Eriko hoped the falling star heard her wish before burning its last and plunging to the earth. She did not believe in falling stars, but there seemed to be no harm in wishing upon one. There was nothing to lose, anyhow. She withdrew her stare at the window and glanced at the magazine next to her. The dim light of the lamp partly showed the face of the Crown Princess of the cover. Eriko sighed again, arms around her blanketed legs as she remained curled up. She rested her chin against her knees as she stared at the magazine just next to her.

Sachiko and Princess Isolde bore resemblance to each other. Sachiko bore resemblance to Hitomi as well. Then, the same goes for Princess Isolde and Hitomi. They look alike, despite the different shades they wore. It was as simple as that.

But to Eriko, it did not seem to be the case at all.

'Is there something you're not telling me, Hitomi…?' she thought. The image on the magazine cover would not lie. There was no scar on her highness' forehead. And those dark blue eyes were hers. This was what the magazine showed. Hitomi's eyes were gray, not blue. But both pairs seemed to tell Eriko the same thing. Both pairs drew out the same in her. As if they were identical… impossible to tell apart… As if they were owned by the same person. Could it be? This confused Eriko. Her eyes seemed to deceive her at this.

'…_if you will pursue your interest in her, regardless…' _

Youko's words. 'I see Hitomi through Princess Isolde… What does this mean?' Eriko picked up the magazine for a closer look. The same rhythm of her heartbeat drummed within her. 'Hitomi came to Japan some days after the princess disappeared. It's not a coincidence… is it?' she wondered. 'Don't be crazy, Eriko. Her highness is in Baltimore. It's impossible.' This was apparent, as this was what the magazine said, but… why is it…? Disregarding their apparent differences and knowing they were both from France, it may be possible. Eriko felt this strongly. 'Is that why she never told me about her family...?' Again, it was possible.

'…_whatever Hitomi will tell you, you will see beyond it.'_

The right shade of gray could conceal darker shades of blue, as one of her instructors mentioned during a lecture on color. Eriko suddenly recalled this. Considering so, it may be possible that Hitomi has been keeping something from her. The publication slipped from the grasp of Eriko's hands. If Hitomi kept a few matters to herself, Eriko would not mind. She would understand. And she would wait until Hitomi would open to her. But as Crown Princess… if Hitomi kept this from her…

Eriko could not think clearly. This was unexpected.

'Have I been… loving a princess all along…?' Eriko asked herself. She was not supposed to doubt. She should not care. It was not her to do so. She shook the thought from her head. 'Maybe I let it into my head too much.' She sighed. 'My imagination does travel far.' She placed the magazine back by the lamp, then telling herself that she will no longer entertain such thoughts. 'I pray,' she said to herself as she looked out the window. '…my wish will come true.'


	11. Onzieme

"Anything else, Rosa Chinensis?" Noriko asked politely, clutching the round tray with both hands.

Sachiko shook her head. "That would be all. Thank you."

"Then, may I join Rosa Gigantea?" Noriko asked again.

Sachiko nodded.

"Thank you," Noriko said, bowing courteously. "Excuse me." The dark-haired girl motioned to take her leave.

Yumi, just sitting by, patiently waited until Noriko left the room. She glanced at the closing door, at the pile of finished papers on the table, at her Onee-sama, then back at her lap. Head tilted, she let out a sigh.

Sachiko put her glass down. She would not turn to Yumi, but she could picture her face in her mind. And that look. She has grown accustomed to that exasperated look on her petite soeur's face that would show everytime the week would come to a close. Like so. Yumi was waiting for Sachiko to say something -- the answer she wanted. But the answer Sachiko could not seem to give. She wanted to… just as much, or perhaps even more than that. The same, growing bout of guilt lurking within her system began to come alive. Again. But somehow, she could not find it in her to say yes.

She opened her mouth to say something. But --

"Never mind," Yumi said in a defeated tone and finally lifted her head. There was an equally-beaten look on her face as she stood and left her seat.

"Yumi --"

"It's all right, Onee-sama," Yumi said, stopping near the door. "I understand." She was about to put her hand on the knob.

"You're upset," Sachiko remarked, guising the suppressed wave of guilt with the composed tone in her voice.

"I need to take care of a few things," Yumi said, as if forcing optimism. Still, would not turn. "I'll be back once I'm done. Excuse me." Slowly, she turned the knob and exited quietly.

Sachiko sighed. A very heavy one. She had yet to say her dissent, but Yumi seemed to know right away… with or without a reasonable alibi to come from her. And Yumi did not prolong the discussion further. Not anymore. Sachiko knew it would come to this. That Yumi would soon stop asking her to the amusement park. But Sachiko seemed not to want this. True, she did not want Yumi to ask her, but then she did not want Yumi to think or feel badly because of it.

'It's only a date to the amusement park…' she thought to herself. 'I could have just…' She had a personal reason for rejecting. It sounded rather craven, perhaps even juvenile, and she did not want to stress further. She would do just about anything for Yumi. Yes. She would. But perhaps… this seemed to be the limit.

"You're alone, Rosa Chinensis…"

Sachiko recognized the voice as Isolde's, Hitomi's, for that matter, as she was in her deceitful shades. "You're supposed to knock," Sachiko said sternly, eyes following Hitomi as she approached one of the windows. Her distant cousin's suddenness slightly startled her that it cut her chain of thought.

"I did," Hitomi reasoned. "Even if Yumi-san left the door open."

Sachiko turned her stare from Hitomi. Hitomi could have knocked, and Sachiko could not have heard it at all. Perhaps… she had been thinking too much. No. Not perhaps. It was for certain that she had been thinking of it too much. Too much that even her keenest of senses would not bother. "Aren't you supposed to be in Kyudo practice?"

"Practice was canceled," Hitomi said, looking around as she relaxed herself next to one of the windows. "I met Yoshino earlier on the way here. She told me you might need help as everyone else is busy with other things."

"I'm fine, thank you." Sachiko said. "I'm almost done here, and I have --" She suddenly paused as she remembered Yumi had gone out. She glanced at Hitomi. She knew her as someone who would not ask but would know. Just like her. "You didn't happen to be eavesdropping earlier, did you?" she suddenly asked.

"I didn't," Hitomi answered. "But… another weekend is to come."

"I see Yumi told you."

"She mentioned it over lunch once," Hitomi said. "I presume you still haven't assented."

"You're right," Sachiko said. "I haven't." She paused, sighing meaningfully. She has told her cousin. And surprisingly… they share the same.

"Fearing elevation puts us in the same boat," Hitomi said. She glanced at the view through the window behind her and kept quiet for a moment. Then, she resumed speaking. "If I may say so, I admire Rosa Chinensis en bouton for her patience…"

Patience. Yumi seemed to have much of it, as well as other special traits Sachiko could not find in other Lillian students. She was not ideal, yes. But she was special. To Sachiko, she was special. And so Sachiko chose her. But… was it exactly the reason she chose Yumi? Somehow, this reason did not seem to suffice.

"And the higher tolerance for you," Hitomi added.

"Tolerance?" Sachiko wondered what her cousin had meant.

"Yumi-san's character serves its purpose," Hitomi said. "That's why you're here." She paused for a moment, pushing back the frames before her eyes. "Yumi-san continuously unravels herself and her feelings for you. But… I'm afraid she has yet to know what these feelings are."

Sachiko has not considered what Hitomi was trying to tell her. And it seemed to lure her into thinking. That perhaps there was more to Yumi than what the surface held, more to her than what Sachiko could see. She could not read Yumi entirely, as Yumi could not read her thoughts. She wanted to know if how Yumi felt was the same as how she felt. But… even Sachiko herself seemed perplexed with her feelings that she did not know what to call them at all.

"Tell me… you haven't considered," Hitomi said.

"Considered…?"

Hitomi sighed.

"Yumi would if she must," Sachiko reasoned briefly.

"And if not?" Hitomi asked. "If Yumi is as childish as you say she is, it is possible."

Sachiko could not answer. Even she was confused. If she does not know what her feelings are… how could she tell Yumi?

"See what is not heard. Listen to what is not seen," Hitomi said. "Feel what could not be understood." She then turned to Sachiko. "Perhaps this is all you and Yumi-san are to do. _Vraiment._" A smile broke into her straight face as she finished. A very sweet one at that.

See. Listen. Feel. Sachiko wondered about those words. She and Yumi… and everything that came in-between. Why is it that when it came to matters with Yumi, she could not seem to grasp as she did toward other things? She wished her cousin would speak much clearer than that. She sounded like Eriko then, cryptic and all. The taller girl by the window was a loner, not to mention, younger, but she said it as if she knew it all so well… then, showing a smile so sweet. Sachiko was not the type to smile as loosely as she. Perhaps this was what set Isolde or Hitomi from her.

"I've never been to an amusement park, Rosa Chinensis," Hitomi said. "I don't intend to, but… if someone asks me to it, I would try…"

A knock suddenly interrupts them.

"Come in," Sachiko said.

Shimako partly came into view as the door slowly opened.

"Rosa Gigantea," Sachiko greeted.

Shimako stepped inside, greeting Sachiko back. "I was looking for Noriko," she said, turning to close the door.

"Noriko left to join you some minutes ago," Sachiko said. "Didn't you see her?"

Shimako turned to face Sachiko. "No, I was --" she suddenly stopped upon noticing Hitomi in the room. Shimako stared at Hitomi. "H-Hitomi…" she fumbled. "I-I…" The surprised look on her face carried a hint of fear as it gradually turned pale.

Hitomi suddenly stood straight at the sound of Shimako's voice.

Shimako quickly withdrew eye contact from Hitomi at this. "I-I'm sorry…" Shimako said, turning to Sachiko. "I need to look for Noriko now." She bowed, hurriedly turning from Sachiko to leave.

"Rosa Gigantea!" Hitomi called Shimako, as if to stop her.

But Shimako did not stop. Or turn. Or even utter a word. She hurriedly approached the door and left.

Hitomi tilted her head at the sound of the door closing. Her left hand tightened to a fist. She turned around, then heaving a sigh.

Sachiko watched everything happen. As she has witnessed, Shimako went in and left so quickly after noticing Hitomi. As the rest in the Rose Mansion have observed, something was the matter with Shimako again. And it did have to do with Hitomi. Shimako used to be comfortable with Hitomi more than anyone else in the Rose Mansion, but suddenly, she has been avoiding her. But as though it puzzled Sachiko as well, she felt that what she and the rest have witnessed over the past few days were not as they seemed. She glanced at Hitomi. Her cousin was not one to go after someone for any likely reason. But Sachiko could feel it strongly that there were other reasons behind the gap that suddenly grew in between.

"Anou…" she finally spoke. "Is there something we need to know?" She thought about leaving her seat to join Hitomi but opted to remain on it.

Hitomi did not answer as she blankly watched Shimako from the window, running farther away from the Rose Mansion, running farther from sight.

"I take that as a 'yes'," Sachiko said.

"It was my fault," Hitomi said, turning from the window.

"Have a seat," Sachiko gestured Hitomi to sit.

Hitomi approached and took a seat on one of the vacant chairs along the table.

"Tell me," Sachiko said calmly.

Hitomi glanced at Sachiko, then began to speak. "Rosa Gigantea, Shimako, was part of my childhood."

"Childhood…" Sachiko pressed against the table. As well as the other things Shimako has kept secret, this, Sachiko has yet to hear its tale. From the exceptional en bouton she was to becoming Rosa Gigantea, Shimako has led a secret life in Lillian. Apart from being exposed as a Buddhist priest's daughter as well as being an exceptional student, not much was known about her. Shimako has always kept things secret, the reasons behind her actions and the feelings that went along with them.

Hitomi was the same, as the blood in Sachiko's veins ran in hers. She would not speak of what she goes through nor speak of her life before and outside Lillian.

"Can you… tell me?" Sachiko asked.

Hitomi leaned back and relaxed. "Mama and I lived in Japan a year before going back to France," she said. "We stayed with Shimako's family."

"And…?"

"Shimako did not know who I was," Hitomi said. "But she looked after me… even without being told. It was an unusual relationship… but at that, we became friends."

"That is likely of Shimako," Sachiko said. Shimako was one to do something if she wanted to, regardless. This was what Sei told her. It was then Sachiko realized that characteristic of Shimako's has endured change over the years. "Eto… I don't see the logic in-between your past and her suddenly avoiding you." Sachiko stared at Hitomi from across. Her cousin seemed at ease at this, sitting comfortably and sounding so calm, but the air told her otherwise. "Unless… you did something to upset her so much."

Hitomi finally shifted on her seat. But she did not answer.

"Again, I take it as a 'yes'," Sachiko said.

* * *

Shimako slowed down, glancing back at the distance she has covered. It was no longer the way to the Rose Mansion anymore, as she observed. She believed she had gone far, impulsively taking one different direction after another until she ended up being where she was. She rested against the first tree she came across, and tried catching her breath. It was then she realized what she had done. 'We talked this over, didn't we?' she said to herself. 'I ran away from Hitomi again. I couldn't face her… Why?' She has conditioned herself already. But somehow, something inside her would not comply with it.

Shimako sighed, lifting her head toward the light that sneaked through the thickness of leaves above her. Then, she looked around, immediately recognizing the trees the surrounded her. Gingko trees, she thought. Even the tree that covered her was a gingko tree. She liked gingko trees and being about them or under them. She liked the nuts that fell from them. She would be called strange, but she liked everything about them.

And the memories that involved them.

_Shimako turned and said to the taller child sitting beside her, who has concluded playing the instrument in her hands. "You played beautifully, Akira." _

_"Gounod's Ave Maria," Akira referred to the piece she had just completed._

_"Gounod's Ave Maria," Shimako echoed. So that was the name of the piece. She decided to remember it. Its name and how well Akira played it for her. She liked it._

_"I still need to practice."_

_Shimako shook her head. "I think it was fine… the way you played it."_

_"Fine…?"_

_"I liked the way you played it. I really did."_

_A shy smile escaped from Akira's face._

_Shimako felt her cheeks burn at the sight of the younger girl's smile. She could not seem to help it that she decided to turn her attention toward the fallen nuts around them. She looked up to the leaves and nuts above then looked at the view ahead. "This is the only gingko tree in this place."_

_"You're right." Akira put her violin beside her and looked around as well._

_"There are other trees here," Shimako said. "Perhaps better ones."_

_"I like it here, Shimako," Akira said._

"I like it here… because it's different," Shimako said, softly repeating the same words Akira told her years ago. Different. This was Akira's reason for staying under the same tree everytime she would wander off. The place Shimako would likely find her.

"Shimako," a voice suddenly interrupted Shimako's thoughts.

* * *

"I thought you made it clear."

Eriko turned her stare to the older, rugged man before her, then slightly tilted her head to the black and white cup before her and the other across it. It took a brief moment before the words she had heard from him finally entered her head. Yes. She had made it clear that she did not want to see him anymore. She did not want to remember then. As far as she knew, it was over… long before it would even start. But now, the memory of it seemed to have no impact on her anymore. It was fine. "You're right," she finally spoke. "I said I no longer wanted to see you."

"Then… why see me now?" the man leaned over and took a sip from his half-empty cup.

"It's not a crime to change views, is it?" Eriko said. "I haven't forgotten, Yamanobe-sensei. But the memory of what was has become lighter for me." She took a sip from her cup. The weight of the memory has become lighter, but she could still remember.

Yamanobe-sensei asked Eriko to see him at the zoo that day. The zoo was where they met and gradually knew each other. And it was there, he told Eriko the truth. That he was to marry someone else. He met her long before he had met Eriko at the zoo. He had been keeping from this from Eriko until a week before the wedding date. But he said he would leave her.

Leave her? When? It was then Eriko felt herself tire from wait with the realization she had only wasted time. Both Yamanobe-sensei's and hers. And after hearing this, she made it clear. She did not want to see him anymore. She loved Yamanobe-sensei. But it was enough for her to hear and realize that he could not stand up for her. It was a waste to wait. He was not the right one.

Yamanobe-sensei did not leave his fiancée anyhow. And the wedding pushed forward as scheduled.

Perhaps… of all things Eriko chose that involved a man older than she, no longer forcing interest, she believed, was the only one set right.

Eriko kept this secret as the months came and went. She dealt with the hurt as she went on as she used to. The days seemed long, but soon enough, it was over. She was ready to speak of it, and she was prepared to face Yamanobe-sensei. She simply needed the right time to see him after the wedding.

"Again, I apologize for not telling you," Yamanobe-sensei said. "I shouldn't have lied to you about it."

Eriko smiled. Then, she shook her head. "I realized I shouldn't demand any apologies. It was my choice. A selfish one, perhaps." She paused, sighing. "Half of me knew you would never take me. But I chose to risk because the other half believed you would."

"I lied to you still, Eriko."

"I don't mind it anymore," Eriko said. "The present is what matters." She took another sip from her cup.

Yamanobe-sensei looked at Eriko. "You seem happier now," he remarked after a long pause.

Eriko relaxed herself on the chair. Then, she looked outside the café window, suddenly spotting two people walking hand in hand as they passed by. Hitomi's shy smile flashed into her head. They have not reached an understanding or even discussed it, but Eriko was happy with Hitomi, despite being timid and unresponsive. There was no need to question or force herself into thinking so. She was happy with Hitomi and the unspoken relationship she shares with her. That was it.

Eriko did not expect someone would come that day. She was not prepared nor was she ready. She thought Hitomi was a bandit… as she believed the grey-eyed stranger had stolen her heart the moment they met. But soon enough, she began to realize that Hitomi did not steal it at all. Eriko had unknowingly given it to her, as if entrusting it, as a princess would trust her life to her knight.

"Princesses can't be with umbrella-makers," Yamanobe-sensei said, sipping from his cup. "Maybe you have realized this already."

"They should be with princes," Eriko said, remembering what the instructor had said once. "Still, I disagree with you." She turned to Yamanobe-sensei, brown eyes filled with certainty.

"Why is that?"

"Because I never believed in standards," Eriko answered. "Even a princess is human. She shouldn't fall under the standards of a typical fairytale, should she?"

"Then… it still isn't a prince you have chosen?"

"Whoever my choice is, it does not matter," Eriko said, smiling. "I never was a princess, Yamanobe-sensei. How long must it take for you to see that?"

* * *

**Foreign Phrase Note:**

_**Vraiment**__ –_ Really


	12. Douzieme

_**Rikka's Note:**__I posted this chapter this morning. I made a few deletions on it while editing, including the most important link to Shimako's scene in the previous chapter. A comment says there seemed to be a gap in-between, but, intentionally, it wasn't supposed to. Sorry for ruining the flow. Anyway, here we go:_

* * *

"Sei-sama, thank you."

"For what?" the boyish, casually-dressed lady beside her asked. There was a playful smile on her face.

Shimako looked up to the sky as she said nothing. After all that thoughtless, impulsive running, she has finally settled on a bench by the gingko trees. Sei was beside her. Somehow, this gave her the sense of relief she wanted to feel... even for a little while. She was thankful that Sei had come at the right time. Very much thankful.

Sei was one to leave Shimako to choose, whatever the case was or how grave it may be. If she would be caught in a situation, she would let Shimako decide to help or otherwise. But as this much freedom seemed apparent, she would watch over her petite soeur. Shimako missed those days. Now that she has become Rosa Gigantea, she was to walk in her grande soeur's footsteps. It was her turn. She was confident enough to take on the responsibility as well as other things. But still...

"You've always liked the gingko," Sei said.

Shimako nodded. "I like seeing them…"

"I don't see why," Sei observed the trees about them.

Shimako smiled, sighing.

"Your sighing sounds like Eriko's," Sei remarked in jest.

"Eriko… sama?" Shimako said in a slightly perplexed tone.

"If I didn't know you that well," Sei teased. "…I would think you're in love."

In love? Her? No, that was not it at all. Was it? It would not show on her face, but this made Shimako feel uneasy. She could not say anything, but it was in her silence Sei could read her perfectly. She had to say something. "Why," Shimako uttered, almost fumbling. "Is Eriko-sama seeing someone else?" She thought Eriko was still seeing Yamanobe-sensei. A sudden change. Shimako knew Eriko as one who would stay firm and would be responsible for all her decisions… regardless. She was one to predict outcome after outcome more accurately than anyone else. But then, when it came to matters of the heart, she did poorly.

Shimako was not one to look into someone else's issues, but suddenly and strangely, this seemed to have roused her attention.

"She said she is," Sei answered, scratching her head. "Well, Youko told me." She slouched on the bench. "Ah, why do I have to worry about that? If Dekochin is in love again, it doesn't concern me."

Shimako giggled. "I never thought you would worry about Eriko-sama," she said.

Sei grumbled. "Such a bother she is," she complained, sighing. "But you're right. We've come a long way. I'd be lying if I said I didn't."

A short silence fell upon them before Sei began to speak again.

"I saw you running from the Rose Mansion," Sei said worriedly. "I followed you here."

Shimako stared at the ground and shook her head. She had made another person feel uneasy because of her actions. This added to her guilt.

"Then, why were you running?"

"I…" Shimako stopped. She wanted to tell Sei. Everything. But it seemed so difficult to tell her. It seemed easier to keep it. Sei was no longer her Onee-sama. Shimako thought Sei should not be doing such things to her anymore. The responsibility and guidance had long been over.

"I'll answer for you," Sei said. "It's because of Hitomi-chan, isn't it?"

Shimako sighed. Score. Bulls-eye. Right on the mark.

She did not want to run away. But she decided not to say anything to keep her feelings from pouring. She knew that in her silence, Sei was likely to say exactly what was inside her. And Sei was not wrong to say such. The sound of Hitomi's name seemed to shatter Shimako's heart no matter how much she controlled herself. Hitomi was not Akira, she repeated. Her eyes were clear enough to have seen the difference. But when she looked into Hitomi's eyes that day, the clear view of the memory suddenly flashed in her head. Her heart suddenly began to beat so fast that it prompted her to run away. Like instinct.

"If you ask me, she's a much better choice than Sachiko," Sei said, as if to jest. "Even if they look and act the same."

Shimako agreed. Sachiko and Hitomi were said to look and act similarly that if they revealed their secret relation to each other, it would not be surprising at all. But to Shimako, in the littlest of ways, Hitomi managed to set herself from Sachiko.

"I don't see why you should run away from her," Sei said.

"You wouldn't understand," Shimako said.

"Understand… what?"

Shimako breathed in, as if to contain herself. Sei wanted to hear her out even if she was likely to know before asking the people involved. It was no use keeping it from her. To finally speak of the matter was like current on the threshold of breaking through a dike. But if Shimako would not say anything… how much more damage would she inflict on herself and the people around her? To Hitomi?

"Hitomi-san reminded me of someone," Shimako said briefly. "Someone I met when I was younger."

"Your friend?"

Shimako reluctantly nodded. If Akira had been sure of friendship, she was sure it never was. They were children. It was likely that they would develop a bond and call it friendship. But as Shimako grew older, upon her gradual assessment of what came between them, though it seemed impossible, she realized her feelings toward Akira have been different since the beginning.

"Something happened."

Shimako did not answer and shifted on her side of the bench for Sei not to see her. Something happened. Yes. Akira left without saying goodbye to her. She should not be thinking about this anymore. The years have gone by already. But at the sound of Akira's known identity being mentioned about the school grounds and elsewhere and Hitomi's presence, it now seemed to her that those feelings have never left at all.

"I'm not good at this," Sei said in a rather hesitant tone. "But sometime soon, you and Hitomi-chan should talk." She placed her hand on Shimako's shoulder. "Meet her halfway. She's waiting for you."

Again, Shimako sighed. It seemed so easy for Sei to tell her.

"My responsibility to you isn't over," Sei said. She stood from the bench. She reached out her hand to Shimako.

Shimako lifted her head to Sei.

"Come on," Sei said, smiling.

Shimako smiled back and placed her hand in Sei's.


	13. Treizieme

The sky has started to change its colors. From a serene mix of blue and white with highlights of silver, it was now a dimming mess of orange and red. The shadows of the trees on both sides stretched on as the sun and its softened rays have come to meet again with the earth below. Another day was about to end. Another week of school has ended.

Sachiko glanced at Hitomi, who watched the sky as she walked. "You'll hurt yourself if you stare too long," Sachiko warned.

"You said you didn't like the way I walk," Hitomi reasoned casually, still looking upward.

"I didn't say you should walk like that," Sachiko said sternly. She wanted Hitomi minimize the habit of walking with her head slightly tilted toward the ground. She would not mind this at all if her cousin was any less than who she is in truth. But her cousin is the Crown Princess.

A ruler must have confidence.

At least, that was what Sachiko believed.

"An heir must be confident." Hitomi finally moved her stare from the sky above. "Mama always told me that…" she said wearily.

"I can tell you miss her," Sachiko said. She grieved upon the loss of her grandmother but it was not to be compared to Hitomi's situation. She could tell that even after all those years, Hitomi still longed for her mother.

"Mama took me with her when she left home," Hitomi said. "She said she wanted me to know the world with her."

"And Onii-sama?"

"Papa wanted him to stay," Hitomi said. "Onii-sama had been chosen to succeed Papa, then. He did well. But… nobody expected he would decline it."

Sachiko was familiar with this story, as the prince himself had told her. But he did not say why. Sachiko thought that the likely reason was that majority preferred his sister over him. "The people seem to like you," she said.

Hitomi shook her head. "They like me because I was different. I was the only De Croix to have formal schooling, the only De Croix to take part in meets, the only De Croix to take buses and trains… But that was because they didn't know who I was. I was free to do those things. When Papa introduced me formally, my life began to change." She paused for a moment. "If someone recognized me along a sidewalk, I was likely to get hurt." She chuckled.

"That can happen here if you're not careful," Sachiko said. "It surprises me that the Lillian Kawabaran isn't too focused on you."

Hitomi giggled. "The Yamayurikai are a much better focus than a mere shutterbug, are they not?" she said, as if to tease.

Sachiko frowned. Her cousin was right after all.

"You may take Yumi-san with you tomorrow," Hitomi said, again raising her head to the sky.

Sachiko glanced at Hitomi. She was to go to the Chantal tomorrow. She did not know whether her cousin was serious or not. She has kept Hitomi's secret from Yumi and has not considered telling her. But that did not mean Sachiko did not trust Yumi. The secret simply was not hers for her to have someone else be involved.

She wondered what made Hitomi speak of it.

"I thought about it," Hitomi said. "If someone is to be affected by my course of actions, I would have to come clean… sooner or later."

"Very well, then," Sachiko said.

A ruler should be responsible.

Hitomi has decided to tell Yumi. It was then Eriko crossed Sachiko's mind. Eriko. What about Eriko? Until now, Hitomi has not told Eriko the truth. A consequence or two would arise from this.

To Sachiko, it could be a potential start another trouble.

* * *

Yumi started praying before Maria-sama without an Onee-sama beside her. They have not met after the last talk they had about the constantly postponed date to the amusement park. Yumi has been told to try to be a little more patient with Sachiko at this. True enough, she could persuade Sachiko to approach things differently, to do things she has yet to try. But somehow, when it came to that date, whatever approach Yumi did to have Sachiko agree, she would fail.

She concluded her prayer. She was to go home. With or without Sachiko.

"Yumi-chan."

Yumi turned to the direction of the voice. There was a lady standing beside her. The uniform she wore suited her well. Her face seemed familiar. It took a few more seconds before Yumi recognized her face. "E-Eriko-sama…" she said.

Eriko smiled at Yumi. "It's good to see you again, Yumi-chan…"

"I-I didn't know you were coming. I'm very sorry," Yumi stammered, bowing with an embarrassed expression showing on her face. It took a little more time for her to recognize Eriko. Yumi wondered why.

Eriko giggled. "I didn't come to visit."

"E?" Yumi lifted her head, face now showing perplexity. Did she hear it right? If Eriko did not come to visit, why did she come to Lillian?

"Eto... Sachiko… where is she?" Eriko asked.

Yumi did not answer and feigned a smile. She and Sachiko still have not met after what had happened earlier.

"May we move along?" Eriko asked.

The two began to walk along the concrete walkway that led to the gate.

Yumi glanced at Eriko, still wondering why the former Rosa Foetida showed up all of a sudden. She counted the number of times Eriko would be asked to come to visit the Rose Mansion since she left. One. Two… Three? Sei persuaded Eriko more than once to come, and when she finally assented, she backed out at the last minute. A few possibilities entered Yumi's head about this. Eriko could be busy. Eriko could still be recovering from heartbreak. Or Eriko simply did not want to go to Lillian.

Eriko has had her share of secrets, like Sei and Youko. But as Yumi learned in her first year, she was not to take any of them too seriously. That would start trouble.

But still, Yumi could not contain her curiosity. Now that she has seen Eriko, she wanted to ask. 'Such a troublemaker Eriko-sama could be,' she thought. Eriko was so skilled in managing to leave everyone guessing. Too skilled that it seemed rather innate than practiced.

"Were you going to ask me something, Yumi-chan?"

"Ee!" Yumi uttered with a startled look on her face. She laughed nervously. "I was," she reasoned, then pausing. "But… I forgot."

"You have to try better than that."

"Ee!" Yumi uttered again, now embarrassed.

Eriko giggled.

"Eriko-sama…" Yumi wondered how Eriko could read her thoughts her like so.

"I've been coming here," Eriko said, suddenly becoming serious. "But not to visit."

"E?" Yumi said. "You have?"

Eriko nodded. "I come here at least twice a week."

This made Yumi even more curious. Twice a week? What could Eriko-sama be up to this time?

"If a princess is happy with her knight," Eriko said. "She should no longer find reason to keep."

"Princess? Knight?" Yumi wondered. Her curiosity seemed to have brought more perplexity instead of answers.

Silence followed and went on as Eriko and Yumi approached and exited the gate. Then, the two stopped.

"Yumi," a familiar voice suddenly calls from behind.

'Onee-sama,' Yumi thought. She turned around.

Sachiko exited the gate and stopped before Yumi. Hitomi was with her.

"Onee-sama…" Yumi uttered.

"I was waiting for you," Sachiko said calmly. "You didn't tell me you were leaving ahead."

"I'm so sorry," Yumi said, bowing. Perhaps her disappointment has gone too far. She felt terrible having her Onee-sama wait like so.

"Inform me next time, all right?" Sachiko said.

Yumi lifted her head and nodded.

Eriko stepped up from behind Yumi.

"Eriko-sama," Sachiko greeted. "Have you been waiting?"

"Yumi-chan kept me company," Eriko said.

"Take care," Sachiko said to Hitomi, tapping her shoulder.

"You too, Rosa Chinensis," Hitomi said, turning to Yumi. "I'll be leaving now, Yumi-san."

"Leaving?" Yumi said. "W-Where…" It was then her eyes caught Eriko approach Hitomi and take hold of her arm. "E?" Something did not seem right.

"Shall we go?" Eriko asked Hitomi.

Hitomi nodded.

"Eriko-sama? Hitomi-san?" the words escaped from Yumi. She had no notion of what was going on at all. Eriko and Hitomi have met? Somehow, she still could not believe it. She opened her mouth again to say something, but her perplexity seemed to have frozen her tracks and the rest of her that all she could do was watch.

"We'll be going now," Eriko said, smiling at Sachiko and Yumi. "… Sachiko, Yumi-chan."

Eriko and Hitomi turned left as they parted ways with Sachiko and Yumi.

Yumi watched as Eriko and Hitomi walked farther and farther. Hitomi never mentioned this to her. Neither did Eriko. A secret? Why? "I… don't understand…" she mumbled.

"Eriko-sama will always leave people guessing," Sachiko said. "I thought you've learned from experience."

Yumi sighed. She has. But it seems she never will learn to refrain from feeding her curiosity. "Next time," she said. "I'll try not to."

"Very well, then," Sachiko said. She paused for a moment. "Eto… Yumi…?"

Yumi turned to Sachiko.

"Would you like to come with me tomorrow?"


	14. Quatorzieme

Almost two years have passed since she left the Palais de Iris. At that short span of time, much seemed to have changed. The palace seemed lonelier as the lights seemed dimmer. The halls seemed quieter, wider, even. She did not think she would see it like so.

Her dark eyes moved their stare and looked about the space where she stood. This was her room. It was just as she left it. Nothing moved. Nothing taken. Nothing altered. But like the rest of the palace, despite being familiar with it, she thought it had changed as well.

_Her highness left just before the start of summer, Lady Godelieve._

Gaston, the head of the household, said this earlier.

Lady Godelieve… this was how people address her now. She stood petite, her face of pure foreign, Oriental features. Straight, raven hair that flowed down her shoulders matched the fairness of her complexion. She was beautiful. No less than that.

She took her seat on the _chaise longue_. Gaston's words still would not leave her head. The Crown Princess left the palace before the summer. She did not disappear at all. This fact had not been kept from Lady Godelieve, despite no longer being part of the palace. But it hurt her that it was not Isolde herself that told her of it. It had come from someone else.

The Crown Princess… Isolde Akira Sacha Egill Dominic Sawada de Croix. Lady Godelieve had come to memorize the Crown Princess' name and its lengthiness over the years she had spent in the palace. The memories in the palace and in Chinatown were as clear as that name and the sound of it in her ears.

To Isolde, she was Alessa Qi Jiao, the person behind Lady Godelieve. Her friend. Her companion. Her sister.

To Lady Godelieve, Isolde was her first. Her first friend. Her first companion. Her first-- No. First seemed not the right word to it.

She and Isolde have been friends for as far as she could recall. But as all other things, they were subject to changes -- her, Isolde, as well as the bond had already set roots within them. Their interests had differed. Their personalities and views had gone through transition. But as each time Isolde would become more withdrawn and distant toward her, she would warm up and open herself to Isolde.

Then… it happened.

_I can't give you what it is you want… I'm sorry…_

Time has passed again as much has happened, but those words still hurt.

Lady Godelieve suddenly cut her thoughts as she heard a knock coming from the main door.

"_Entrer, sil vous plais,_" she said.

A lanky, ageing man, with thinning gray hair, dressed in a black tuxedo entered the room. He approached, stopping a few steps before Lady Godelieve, and bowed courteously. "The king is here to see you, Lady Godelieve," he said.

"Thank you, Gaston," Lady Godelieve said.

Gaston bowed again and turned around, bowing before King Jean Aimeri before finally leaving the room.

Lady Godelieve stood from her seat and bowed courteously before the king.

* * *

_… Curtis said over our recent conversation that it was absolutely unlikely of me to think of matters that aren't necessarily mine. Well, that may be so, but in this case… I should make an exception. _

_Even if Sachiko-onee-sama would not speak, even if she has other reasons for postponing her date with Yumi-san, I feel part of the responsibility is mine. I feel I am partly responsible for making Yumi-san feel very unhappy every weekend. Had I not come, perhaps Sachiko-onee-sama could have focused on making it up to her._

_But I am very grateful that Sachiko-onee-sama has cared for me well. And I am very grateful for Yumi-san's sincerity and kindness._

_Yumi-san doesn't know Sachiko-onee-sama and I are related. I denied this to her, but when she asked me, when the girls in the milk hall asked me, I didn't know anything. Neither of us knew we were related at all. But even if we now know that we are, because of the lies I've instilled, Sachiko-onee-sama and I couldn't be proud of it._

_Lies. Come to think… I have made quite a number of them. Mais... quelle différence là est? Ma vie elle-même est un mensonge..._

_Lies can't be corrected by lies. I've learned this the hard way._

_As Hitomi, I have found the self I seemed to lose as Isolde Akira. In this role, I am happy… but then I am fooling myself because I know that this happiness isn't real. Soon, I will have to go back to who I am._

_I have hurt people in this selfish decision, Papa, Shimako, and soon… Torii-san. I don't want this. But I know I can never avoid it. _

_I was never the bandit, the knight, or the grey-eyed companion she sees. I am a princess. La Princesse de Couronne de la France. But it seems no amount of courage could ever surmount the growing fear inside me. I wish I could earn enough courage to finally tell her the truth and enough strength to face the consequences. _

"_Une héritière devrait être responsable._

_Une héritière devrait faire face à la conséquence…_

… _De chaque façon, une héritière devrait être avec la grace…"_

Isolde concluded. She placed her pen back into the holder and closed her journal. She pushed her chair from the desk and slightly turned to her right, to the drawer where a compact panel was in place. She pressed her right thumb on the grayish, opaque pad on its left. A clicking sound followed. She pulled the drawer and placed the black journal inside it. She pushed the drawer back, the same click sounding off again, this time, signaling that the drawer has been locked. She lifted her head, shifting a little to the direction where her teddy bear, Ricco, sat all hunched.

"Biometrics_,_" Isolde smiled at Ricco. "_Peut-être… je sais maintenant..._" she said meaningfully and lifted Ricco from the table as she stood. She stepped back, pushing the chair to the desk, and reached to flick the switch to the light at the overhead of the desk. Ricco in one arm, she turned and approached to the direction to her bed.

Isolde sat on the side of her bed by the lamp and placed Ricco on her lap. "I'm meeting Yumi-san tomorrow," she said. "As myself…" She placed one hand on Ricco's head. "I wonder how it will go…" She giggled as she recalled the countless facial animations and sounds Yumi made. "I can't quite picture the look on her face." She paused. "Curtis said I should go and see Shimako, too," she continued. "I know Shimako doesn't hate me… What I do know… is that she's hurt. Perhaps I should have said goodbye. But… it's too late to think of it now."

She kept silent for a moment, staring at the stuffed bear and its familiar brownness. The hue of Ricco's synthetic fur seemed to have absorbed her thoughts again.

Isolde felt her heart skip as an image quickly flashed in her head. Eriko. A clear, vivid picture of her smile. This, Isolde found strange and rather funny. If she seemed to have stored and preserved it in her memory effortlessly, almost perfectly… she barely, vaguely recalled how the bond between her and Eriko crawled its way to its present state. "Is this how it's supposed to be?" she asked.

No exchange of thoughts. No confessions. No agreements. No affirmation. Isolde was happy with the unsaid and unnamed. Yet, despite this happiness, she has not forgotten that one day, she would have to tell the truth… regardless.

A knock suddenly interrupts.

"_Entrer, sil vous plais,_" Isolde said courteously, putting Ricco aside.

The door opened. An elderly woman clad in a purple robe entered the bedroom -- Queen Adelais, Isolde's grandmother. Her silver-gray hair was tied to a bun with a matching purple cap to cover her head. She seemed to have something in her hands. "_Ne peut pas dormir?_" she said, slowly approaching Isolde's bed.

"_Je dormirai bientôt_, _Grandmaman_," Isolde said. She wondered why her grandmother had come to visit her at this late hour.

"I still think this room is too small for you," the Queen said, chuckling as she sat beside Isolde and placed the elegant white case she carried onto her lap.

"_Non, Grandmaman_," Isolde said. The corner of her eye noticed the familiar emblem on the case but did not bother ask. "It's fine here. _Vraiment._"

"Your father said your room in the palace is more spacious," the Queen said.

"I was never comfortable in there, _Grandmaman_," Isolde said. She wanted to tell her grandmother that it was not only her room, but she opted not to speak further. After everything that had occurred over the past few years, it seemed to her that the palace had suddenly become the improper place for her to stay.

"Oh, yes," the Queen uttered suddenly, tapping the white case in her hands. "There is something I would like you to see." She gestured Isolde to look at the square case.

Isolde looked at the case as her grandmother opened it. Inside it was a gold ornament, about the size of a pocket watch. It was a meticulously shaped and detailed adornment of the Fleur de Lis, the symbol of heraldry of the Royal Family of France.

Queen Adelais carefully lifted the adornment, taking it and its golden chain from the case. She glanced at the chain, smiling, then turned to Isolde. "May I?" she asked, unlocking the chain, and reached for Isolde.

Isolde shifted slightly as the chain and pendant were placed and fastened around her neck.

"There we go," the Queen said, smiling, and withdrew her arms from Isolde. She reached for the pendant, holding it lightly. "This is yours now…" she said, then letting go of the pendant.

"_Grandmaman…_" Isolde uttered, finding herself speechless. She scooped up the pendant and its solidness with one hand to stare.

"I found it in one of my closets," the Queen said. "Your father never had the chance to wear it as I thought I lost it. I suddenly remembered a few hours ago that I had kept it here, not in Palais de Iris." She chuckled and then cleared her throat to speak again. "You know, Aki-chan," Queen Adelais said, voice suddenly turning serious. "I was the only person to believe you will succeed Jean Aimeri."

Isolde dropped the pendant in her hand, as if to disagree. She recalled it clearly that her grandmother was first to object the king's decision. "Weren't you --"

"I disapproved of it, yes," the Queen said. "But that was because you were very young … And you were trained differently from your brother."

"Onii-sama has been taught well, _Grandamaman_," Isolde said. "His experience would have been of greater help."

The Queen shook her head. "That may be so… but a good leader must think of others," she said.

"I have been selfish, too, _Grandmaman_," Isolde said. "If not, I would not be here."

"Wasn't it you who said that any course of action is good or evil by intent?" the Queen asked. "To know oneself before taking responsibility is not wrong. What your brother did… to you, to Alessa, and to those involved… his decision and actions… were of egotistic motives."

Isolde turned from her grandmother and tilted her head, remembering that nothing could ever be kept secret to the Queen when it came to palace matters, no matter how great the distance she was away from the palace. Her grandmother seemed so right in saying so. Degare was willing to do anything for Alessa, and he would spare no one when it came to her. Not even his sister. The damage inflicted on Isolde was a reminder of this.

She lifted the pendant again, displacing her attention to it as to erase the thoughts from her head. She stared at it for a moment, then, turned it over. There seemed to be something at the back. 'What's this…' she wondered, bringing the pendant for a closer look.

"Alessa chose you, did she not?" the Queen said, exhaling heftily. "It's sad that you could not return the same."

Isolde said nothing, the Queen's words prompting her to let go of the pendant. Being a more frequent target of female affection has been a known fact about her, but still, she felt embarrassed hearing the Queen speak of such things. But it was true. Alessa chose her over Degare, but she would not return those feelings Alessa had harbored for her.

A few years ago, Degare unexpectedly declined the throne and his privileges, as first child of the Royal Family. To the public, his reasons were personal, yet undisclosed. But to those of the Royal Family and of the palace, it was an open fact... that the prince denied both place and birth right in his intent to win a lady's attention -- Alessa's. Yet, after this, and perhaps, so much more, he failed.

Indeed… Alessa harbored the same. Not for the prince but for Isolde. This was the reason Alessa would not answer. This was the reason a day's wait turned into a week's, into a month's, into a year's. And when Alessa finally told the truth, it not only upset Degare. It angered him.

It was over now. Everything has been said. Everything has been done. But as everything has been forgiven, Isolde still would not let any of that memory touch her thoughts.

"Growing outside palace standards is a great advantage," the Queen said, breaking the silence. "I thought you have realized this."

"Advantage…" Isolde said. No, she has not seen this as an advantage at all.

"The people like you because you are different," Queen Adelais said. "_Rappelez-vous._" She placed her hand on Isolde's head. "Now, rest your head. You have fencing practice tomorrow morning. _Bonne nuit!_" She kissed her granddaughter's forehead.

"_Bonne nuit, Grandmaman…_" Isolde greeted, watching the Queen as she left the room. Different… the word faded in her head. She took Ricco with her as she tucked herself in. Again, she scooped up the pendant. "This can grow heavier, Ricco," she said of it but no longer thought further as she decided to put her thoughts to rest.

* * *

The back of the light turquoise envelope read: RSVP.

Eriko tossed the invitation back on the table. Because of its suddenness, she had to cancel her date with Hitomi on Sunday. Her father wanted to take her with him to the social function, reasoning that ever since she decided to live far from him and her brothers, on her own even, she no longer had time to see any of them. She did not want to go. But her father insisted. She could not say no at that.

It was all right not to see Hitomi this weekend. Of course, it could get lonely not seeing her, but Eriko did not want Hitomi to get tired of her. And when it came to that, perhaps… a little absence would not hurt as much. She felt guilty about setting Hitomi aside. But Hitomi had already told her that it was fine. That there was always a next time.

To Hitomi, it was fine. To Eriko it was not. She never did like social functions as they often bored her. She thought Hitomi could save her from it. But it involved her father, after all. And though she has told Hitomi of her father and brothers, she has yet to tell them about her. At this, Eriko felt even guiltier.

'It's… not all right, Hitomi…' she said to herself. 'Really.'

She turned to the invitation as the lamp shone over it. Other than being a social function, something seemed to bother her more that she wanted to back out. But then, something about it seemed to urge her to go. As a part of her seemed to tell her it would not be worth her time, a fraction of her seemed to tell her that it would be fine.

It would not get boring.

It would not get lonely.

* * *

**French Phrase Notes:**

_**Chaise longue**_

-- Couch

_**Entrer, sil vous plais.**_

-- Come in, please.

_**Mais... quelle différence là est? Ma vie elle-même est un mensonge...**_

-- But… what difference is there? My life itself is a lie…

_**Une héritière devrait être responsable.**_

-- An heir should be responsible.

_**Une héritière devrait faire face à la conséquence… **_

-- An heir should face consequence…

… _**De chaque façon, une héritière devrait être avec la grace… **_

-- …In every manner, an heir should be with grace...

_**Peut-être… je sais maintenant...**_

-- Perhaps… I know now.

_**Ne peut pas dormir?**_

-- Can't sleep?

_**Je dormirai bientôt,**__**Grandmaman**__._

-- I will sleep soon, Grandmother.

_**Rappelez-vous.**_

-- Remember.

_**Bonne nuit!**_

-- Good night!


	15. Quinzieme

Yumi moved her stare from the moving view from the car window and turned to Sachiko. "Where are we going, Onee-sama?" she asked. It was not a date to the amusement park, but she seemed to have been wrapped up in her excitement that she has only thought about asking Sachiko just now.

"We're going to Saint Anatole," Sachiko answered. "I haven't told you, have I?"

Yumi shook her head. "Saint Anatole?" she said. She remembered Tsutako telling her about this place and Hitomi answering her that she lived there. She has been curious of that place as both Tsutako had also told her that the place was not too receptive of guests. This made her so curious that if she would be given the chance, she would go and visit it. Like now.

'Onee-sama,' she thought. Her Onee-sama was always full of surprises.

"Someone wants to meet you," Sachiko said. "She asked me to take you with me on my next visit."

"E? Really?" Yumi said, a sharp pitch of eagerness in her voice. "Who is it, Onee-sama?"

The black car slowed down to a stop. At its right was a high, railed gate with an arc over it. The arc of iron had an arrangement of fancy, cursive letters between the pair of fleur de lis shaped designs at both ends. The letters read: "Saint Anatole".

Yumi stared at the closed gate, the well-dressed and armed guards surrounding it, and the white guardhouse behind its right side. Tsutako seemed right to say that the place was not too receptive of guests.

"We're here," Sachiko said.

"B-but the gate's closed," Yumi said. "How will we--" She stopped as the gate suddenly parted open.

The car started again, turning right toward the path behind the open gate.

"E?" Yumi observed both sides of the Palais Drive in awe. The place seemed as if it were from a classic film. Quiet. Organized. Serene. Classic. The houses were bigger than she had imagined. Beautiful, even. And to think Hitomi lived in one of them. To think she lived in a place such as this. Yumi felt a slight touch of envy.

"Would you like to see what is ahead of us?" Sachiko asked.

Yumi turned to Sachiko then looked ahead. There was another tall, railed gate at the forefront. There were walls that seemed to span the distance across Saint Anatole. Yumi stared on, her curiosity and excitement growing as the car drew closer. She hoped for a glimpse at the Chantal partly hidden behind the walls and the high gate. At least, even one short glimpse. She shifted to get a better view as the car made its way toward the last intersection along Palais Drive.

But the car neither turned left nor right.

Yumi was suddenly cut from her thoughts. She watched as the car moved away from the junction, then she turned to the direction it headed -- straight. Straight? Wait. Are they… heading…?

The car began to slow down, coming to a stop as it reached the high gate of black and gold railings.

"E?" Yumi uttered. Perhaps… that answers her question.

"Welcome to 8 Palais Drive," Sachiko said.

Yumi turned to Sachiko with a perplexed look on her face.

The gate then slid open.

* * *

The Chantal.

So… this is it.

Yumi looked about the simple, yet elegant surrounding, from the surrounding white walls, the drapery on enormous windows, the carvings on doors of various hues and sizes, the grand, carpeted stairs ahead, and to the life-sized, realistic painting on the wall in the middle, at the T-junction of the stairs. She stepped away from the decorated carpeted path to the stairs and tilted her head toward the floor. There, she saw herself and the crystal chandelier overhead. She lifted her head toward the chandelier, eyes sparkling in awe.

Beautiful. Beautiful indeed.

Guilbert, head of the household, approached them.

"_Bonjour_, _Demoiselle_ Ogasawara, _Mademoiselle_ Fukuzawa," Guilbert greeted, bowing courteously before Sachiko and Yumi.

Yumi, startled, withdrew her stare from the ceiling and gave Guilbert a slightly perplexed look. 'He… knows my name…?' she thought. Perhaps Sachiko must have told them ahead.

"_Bonjour_, Guilbert," Sachiko greeted back, smiling gently at the old gentleman.

"A guest arrived just after her Highness' practice at the salle," Guilbert said, gesturing Sachiko and Yumi to come with him.

"A guest?" Sachiko said.

Yumi turned to the great, red-carpeted stairs, then noticing someone coming down from them. Her face seemed familiar. Very familiar. Very familiar that… Wait. Wait a minute. "E?" Yumi uttered.

The girl stepped from the landing, down to the carpeted path. She stopped and stared back at Yumi. She was smiling.

"T-Tsutako-san?" Yumi stammered, disbelief written all over her face. Tsutako was here. She was here in the Chantal. In the Chantal without her camera hanging on her neck. Without… her camera? This made Yumi even more dumbfounded. It was not likely of Tsutako at all.

"Surprising to see you here, Yumi-san, Rosa Chinensis," Tsutako said, stepping toward Sachiko and Yumi.

"W-What are you doing here?" Yumi asked, the look of surprise still apparent.

"Seeing Her Highness," Tsutako answered casually.

"Seeing… Her Highness?" Sachiko repeated, eyes slightly narrowing.

"Her Highness is a touch cryptic, isn't she?" Tsutako remarked. "I have to go now. Her Highness should be coming in a moment."

"See _Mademoiselle_ Takeshima off, Guilbert, sil vous plais," a voice from behind said.

Yumi turned around, to the direction of the voice. "E…?" she uttered, speechless. Her eyes seemed to fool her at this.

A marvelous presence approached toward her and stopped a short distance from her. Tall. Tousled, dark hair. Deep blue eyes shielded by framed lenses. Face of a striking similarity to Sachiko's.

Yumi stood, gaping blankly at the stunning presence before her. At this, her face turned pale. That girl… Could she be…? Is it possible…? And upon her gradual realization, she began to freeze inside out.

"_Oui, votre Altesse_," Guilbert said, bowing.

Yumi could not understand what the old man had just said, but she did not have to. She knew who it was, that presence. That presence was no other than… No other than… No… Still, she could not believe it. But it is her. Yumi suddenly felt the heat fall upon her. She could not seem to take it. She felt queasy as the ceiling above her seemed to spin quickly toward her.

"Yumi!" Sachiko exclaimed.

"E…?" Yumi slowly opened her yes. It was quiet, she observed as the blurred view of the ceiling gradually became clear. The ceiling… 'Where… am I?' she asked herself, looking left, then right. Everything seemed unfamiliar to her. She realized she was in a different place. 'I must have been dreaming,' she thought. 'But… where… am I?' She tried to recall what had occurred earlier, tracing backward. Slowly. Slowly…

* * *

'Yumi!'

That voice.

"Onee-sama!" Yumi exclaimed as she suddenly darted up from the bed. Right. She remembered she was with her Onee-sama before she found herself here. This foreign room… why is she here? And Sachiko… where is she?

"Are you all right, Yumi-san?"

"E?" Yumi uttered. She remembered that voice. She was beginning to feel the cold climb up her back. Reluctantly, she turned to her left.

It was her again. Princess Isolde.

Yumi sneaked her hand, clutching the first object she could grab from behind her. This is a dream. Yes. She is dreaming. This explains why she could not recognize this place and why her Onee-sama is not here with her. Everything around her and the Princess Isolde before her, they are not real. They are all part of this dream.

And if this is a dream, she can do whatever she wants, then forget about it upon waking from it.

She quickly lifted the pillow overhead.

"You were-- Ouch!" Isolde exclaimed as the white pillow hit her, lifting one arm to defend herself. "Ouch!" she uttered at every blow Yumi inflicted on her.

But Yumi would not hear her.

"Yumi-san, wait-- Ouch!"

"I must admit… I was surprised," Sachiko remarked, glancing at Tsutako as they walked their way from the guest bed they left Yumi and Isolde in. As with Isolde and Yumi, Sachiko felt that a word or two with Tsutako would provide her answers and clarifications.

It was not surprising that Isolde and Tsutako knew each other as they belonged to the same class. It was not surprising that they would become friends as they belonged to the same club. But it surprised Sachiko to know that all along, Tsutako has been keeping the same secret as her.

Her cousin could be full of surprises.

"I was, too, Rosa Chinensis," Tsutako said. "I wasn't a firm believer of rumors, so I didn't believe you and Her Highness were related after all."

"She kept this a secret from you?"

Tsutako nodded. "Perhaps she didn't want to involve the both of us too much that she decided to keep my share of secrets from you and yours from me."

"So… tell me," Sachiko said. "Why do you know Aki-chan?"

"My father used to work for King Jean Aimeri," Tsutako explained. "I met Princess Isolde more than once in Paris, before I entered first year in Lillian. We got along well because of our common interests -- the love for photography, for one thing." Then, she paused.

"I see," Sachiko said. Photography. This was an interest that set her apart from her cousin, who seemed to have a quite the eye for images and the skill for taking them.

"I didn't want her to enter Lillian. I openly resented the idea, since I knew how much a bother the Lillian Kawabaran could be," Tsutako continued, pushing her glasses. "But Otou-san told me that it would be better, so I could keep an eye on her."

"Keep… an eye…" Sachiko knew what Tsutako had meant at that. Now, she understood why Isolde managed to spend her days in Lillian away from the possible intrigues that might plague her and the press that could have hounded her everyday.

"As a viewpoint goes," Tsutako said. "What is the sacrifice of a hundred if it will benefit of a thousand? Perhaps this is another situation that I would have to disagree with."

The two fell quiet again, as they walked on.

Sachiko side-glanced at Tsutako. She has associated the bespectacled girl with Minako's cheeky, snooping petite soeur, Mami, as she has always seen them together. The Lillian Kawabaran staff was a nosy lot, to begin with, and she did not like it. And given that, perhaps she has tended to overlook Tsutako, who was never part of them and who, in fact, has been there for Yumi as any friend in deed would. "Tsutako-san," she said, breaking the silence. "Thank you."

* * *

No, it was not a dream.

It was real.

Yumi had already apologized for her course of actions, but still, she felt the touch of embarrassment in her veins as she sat beside Isolde on the edge of the bed and listened to her.

"Hitomi is your mother's name?" she said after hearing the princess speak.

Isolde nodded. "Papa wanted me to use it," she said.

"So that explains it," Yumi said. She kept quiet for a moment. She knew the truth now, and it was clear to her. Why Hitomi would not talk much about her life in France. Why she seemed to know the Crown Princess well. Why she would not bother join the other girls in their constant chatter about her. Why, at times, she spent time alone. Why Sachiko cared so much about her… And why Tsutako seemed uninterested.

Hitomi is the Crown Princess Isolde Akira. And the Crown Princess… is Sachiko's cousin. Sachiko's long-lost cousin. And Tsutako's friend.

No wonder.

"Eriko-sama, does she…?"

Isolde shook her head. Her eyes suddenly dimmed at this.

Yumi inched closer to Isolde. She could feel the princess' unease toward the question she had sparingly just answered. "I'm sorry," Yumi said.

"It's… not your fault, Yumi-san," Isolde said. "Someday, I will have to tell her the truth."

"I don't see why you couldn't tell her," Yumi said. "Eriko-sama is your friend, too, right?"

"I used to think so," Isolde said. "But… we're not."

"You're… not…?" Yumi uttered with an equally-perplexed look on her face. They are not friends? If they are not friends, what does that make them? Is this why Isolde could not tell Eriko?

"If Torii-san knew who Hitomi is underneath, she might not like her anymore," Isolde said. "A princess is not on her list of choices, I'm afraid."

"List of… choices?"

"I may be different… but as a princess, I can't be different enough for her to even reconsider," Isolde said.

Yumi thought for a moment. "Your Highness, you like Eriko-sama, don't you?" she asked.

Isolde did not answer.

"You know, your Highness," Yumi said. "Meeting you for the first time was a bit the same as first meeting Onee-sama… I couldn't talk. I couldn't think. All I could do was stare because I was such a big fan of yours and all…" She glanced at Isolde, smiling. "But when I found out who you are, I couldn't see now… why I had to feel that way. I understand how you feel, your Highness, why you did all these things… It was because you felt lonely."

She paused for a moment, again thinking the right words to say. Then, she breathed in. "Anou…" she continued, voice a touch nervous. "Eriko-sama is strange, but… please trust her at this, your Highness. Really!" She exhaled. 'Did I… say it right?' she thought, hesitantly turning to Isolde.

Isolde said nothing but turned to Yumi. She was smiling.

Yumi chuckled nervously as a childish expression escaped through her face. The Crown Princess was smiling now. She sighed, feeling relieved. "I'll keep your secret for as long as you want to, your Highness."

"Thank you, Yumi-san," Isolde said.

"It's nothing," Yumi said, shaking her head. "You are my friend. It's what I should do, right?"

"Sachiko-onee-sama's fortunate to have you," Isolde said, lifting her head toward the ceiling. "That… I can tell."

Yumi's cheeks flushed. How could Isolde say that? She could not find any reason for her Onee-sama to be fortunate in having her at all. She opened her mouth to speak, but the words somehow would not come out.

"It could get lonely, Yumi-san," Isolde said. "Very lonely." She turned to Yumi. "That's why… you're here."

"D-Don't think of it so much, Y-Your Highness," Yumi said nervously. "I-I was just… just…" Her thoughts suddenly came to a stop. Just… what? She could not seem to answer.

Isolde chuckled. "Now… if I may ask," she said. "You like Sachiko-onee-sama, don't you?"

* * *

**French Phrase Notes:**

_**Bonjour**_

-- Good day

_**Demoiselle (Noble)**_

-- Lady (Aristocratic Title)

_**Mademoiselle**_

-- Miss

_**Salle**_

-- Fencing practice hall

_**Oui, votre Altesse**_

-- Yes, your Highness.


	16. Seizieme

Isolde deftly moved her left hand about the neck of the violin, each nimble finger positioning itself with accuracy to sound every note and its corresponding pitch and count. The slight movements she made in place were refined yet as lithe as the bow in her other hand sliding adroitly back and forth across the row of strings. The look in her eyes seemed to correspond to the tempo of the violin's sole sound. Intense. Deep. Powerful. Passionate. Alive.

Yet, lonely.

Yumi watched intently as Isolde performed before her. She has always enjoyed this, hearing Hitomi, Isolde for that matter, play the violin. Isolde plays well, far too well. Yes, there is no doubt in saying such as she played a masterpiece with an ill-treated violin. But it was not that at all. To her, Isolde played the instrument with heart. Every key on scale, every note on the piece… the music seemed to bare Isolde's heart as it seemed to touch and reach into its listener.

Yumi has admired Isolde at this, among other things she excelled in.

Isolde slowed down. She moved the bow downward as her fingers positioned last, ending the piece. She put the violin down, bowing courteously with a shy smile on her face.

"Yay!" Yumi clapped, giggling childishly. "You were very good, Your Highness!"

"Thank you," Isolde said. She walked toward the violin case and placed the instrument back inside.

"I like hearing you play a lot," Yumi said. "Really."

Isolde closed the violin case and approached to sit beside Yumi. "It's not surprising, since you often ask me to play for you."

"I don't… bother you when I ask, do I?" Yumi asked timidly as she tilted her head.

"I never thought of it that way."

Yumi kept quiet for a moment. Then, she turned to Isolde. "You've been very nice to me, your Highness."

"We're friends, Yumi-san," Isolde said, smiling. "It's nothing. I'm glad to be of help."

Yumi smiled back, then looked away from the princess. Nothing, the word lingered in her mind. She remembered what Rei and the rest of the Yamayurikai had told her a number of times. That she could manipulate Sachiko as she pleases. Like a puppet on strings. Isolde would do as Yumi asks, more often than not, that she wondered if it was natural for her Onee-sama's bloodline to take influence from someone like her.

Come to think, Kashiwagi does as her brother, Yuuki, says.

She now wondered if her bloodline had anything to do with it as well.

"A lot of students say Hitomi looks like Onee-sama. It's true, really. You look alike, act alike, sometimes, even sound alike. But, Onee-sama isn't your Highness. And your Highness isn't Onee-sama… Doesn't it bother you?"

"Ah," Isolde uttered as a trace of awkwardness escaped on her face. "It's fine. I don't mind it at all, honestly."

"You're a lot different from her," Yumi said. "Really."

"E? How so?" Isolde suddenly asked.

Yumi shrugged and said nothing. 'How so…' she asked herself, dwelling upon the princess' question in her silence. It was a simple question, but it seemed too difficult for her to answer.

"As the fox in _Monsieur_ Antoine De Saint-Exupery's 'The Little Prince' said," Isolde suddenly spoke, breaking the silence. "_'Go and look again at the roses. You will understand that yours is unique in all the world…'_"

"E?" Yumi turned to Isolde. Roses. Unique. What exactly did her Highness mean?

"The fox said this as well, _'It is only with the heart that one can see rightly…'_" Isolde continued. She paused again, as if thinking.

It is only with the heart that one can see rightly. The words were neither deep nor complicated for Yumi to understand. It was then she found her mind trailing back…

_Does she like Sachiko?_

…Back to that question. That previously, unanswered question.

"It seems I've answered it for you Yumi-san," Isolde said.

"Answered what?"

"Oe…?" Yumi uttered sharply, startled. Her Onee-sama's voice. She turned to the guest room door's direction as Sachiko stood just a short distance from it. A very discomfited expression was evident on her face as she reluctantly stood.

"Sachiko-onee-sama, Tsutako-san," Isolde said, standing up, and approached Sachiko and Tsutako.

"I see Yumi-san's all right now," Tsutako said.

"She handled it fine, isn't that right, Yumi-san?" Isolde said, turning to Yumi.

Yumi stood frozen her head tilted toward the carpeted floor. Her face was as pale as the walls surrounding them. She heard the princess, but then, no words seemed to come out of her at all.

"Do I look like a ghost, Yumi?" Sachiko asked with an equally-stern look on her face.

Yumi heard Sachiko, but still, she could not answer. Isolde's words made her feel as if she had been opened, freed. There was no need to feel this strange, but why is it that she could not seem to control herself from feeling so. "E-Eto…" she stammered in a soft tone. Her knees weakened more as she lifted her head toward Sachiko.

Her vision suddenly blurred that she could no longer see what was ahead of her. The heat… that same heat fell quickly fell upon her. She began to feel queasy again as the walls around her began to blur.

* * *

Sachiko reached for Yumi's head.

_Take her home, sil vous plais, Sachiko-onee-sama. Perhaps Yumi-san should rest._

Rest, Sachiko thought, feeling Yumi's warmth on her palm. Yumi seemed fine before coming to the Chantal with her very late this morning, excited and such. When she fainted once, as though she felt a touch of jealousy toward it, Sachiko thought it was a natural reaction, as Yumi had met a person she could only see and admire on magazine covers and on television.

But then, she fainted the second time in the guest room.

'Have I been stressing you…?' Sachiko asked in her thoughts. 'You worry me.' She was worried. Yes, she admitted this. She and Yumi had not talked long or serious enough as both of them had been quite busy. The visit to the Chantal was the time they had been granted to be together a little while longer. But it did not go well. Now, she was to take Yumi home.

Right now, she wanted Yumi to tell her how she was feeling. Anything. At least, before they part.

Sachiko withdrew her hand from Yumi and looked through the view outside the car window. 'Today did not go well,' she said to herself.

A groan.

Sachiko looked to her left as Yumi stirred. Then, she reached for her.

Yumi slowly opened her eyes, then started awake upon noticing Sachiko's hand on her. "O-Onee-sama!" she quickly moved away, cheeks slightly reddening.

Sachiko moved her hand from Yumi. There seemed to be fear in Yumi's eyes, she observed. Was there something wrong with what she had just done? She did not mean to scare Yumi like so.

Silence fell upon them for a brief moment.

"I…" Yumi said. "I'm sorry, Onee-sama." She looked around, then through the window beside her.

"You fainted again in the guest room," Sachiko said calmly. "Aki-chan told me to bring you home."

"Aki… chan… Her Highness?" Yumi said. "Did she say anything else?"

"No," Sachiko said. "She didn't."

"Oh." Yumi relaxed at her side of the backseat.

"Eto… Yumi?"

Yumi turned to Sachiko.

Sachiko stared back at Yumi. Those undetermined feelings inside her seemed to rise the longer she held her stare toward her petite soeur. Continuously. Like a tide about to gauge beyond her control.

_I may be guilty of the same, but it's improper to have others wait too long, Sachiko-onee-sama..._

'Aki-chan…' Sachiko thought as her cousin's words suddenly entered her head. Wait. Wait for what?

"Were you going to say something, Onee-sama?" Yumi suddenly asked, as if to break Sachiko from her thoughts.

Sachiko shook her head. "No. Never mind," she said, opting to look through the window beside her. She seemed to have forgotten was she was to say.

"You two really look alike."

Sachiko was stopped at Yumi's words. Look alike? She turned to Yumi.

"Most of the students believed you and her Highness were related," Yumi said. "Her Highness' face reminds me of the Onee-sama I met a year ago. More so up close."

"I know," Sachiko said briefly. She could not deny this as well.

"I never thought it would be true. I never thought she would be here… with us," Yumi said. "That's why, when I saw her, I didn't know what to do at all. I was such a big fan of hers, like the other girls in school." She paused, then chuckling. "I'd been raving about her in front of Hitomi, and then, I find out that they're the same person."

"If I'd kept it from you, I ask your forgiveness," Sachiko said.

Yumi shook her head. "Her Highness told me the same and about you and Tsutako-san covering up for her. There's nothing to feel sorry about, Onee-sama. I understand. If I knew it, I would've kept it, too."

"She told me to take you with me to her," Sachiko explained. "I suppose… this means you have gained her trust."

Yumi beamed upon Sachiko's words. "I won't fail her, yes!" she said, raising one fist upward with a determined look on her face.

Sachiko chuckled, reaching to pat Yumi's head. "Do your best, then," she said.

Yumi nodded eagerly.

Sachiko eased herself on her side of the backseat as she turned from Yumi. Eriko. Yes, about Eriko. She realized how most serious and sensitive the matter could be when it came to her. "And…" she added. "…do keep this from Eriko-sama."

* * *

"Your father asked you?" Youko said. "I thought he promised never to pressure you into going with him again."

Eriko sighed, turning her head from the view of the slightly crowded sidewalk outside the café window. She knew her father too well that she knew he was not as serious as he seemed when he said so.

"Your father and your brothers spell trouble, Eriko," Sei commented, drinking from her cup. "Shouldn't you have realized that by now?"

"You're both smart," Eriko said, rather exasperated. "You tell Otou-san I don't want to go."

Youko and Sei looked at each other.

"I had to cancel my date tomorrow because of the social function," Eriko complained.

"Cancel?" Sei said, again drinking from her cup. "Your date with Hitomi-chan?"

Eriko looked at Sei, taken aback by those words. Sei knew? Since when? It was supposed to be a secret. It was unexpected as Eriko knew Sei cared less of her, but even so, it was on her list of possibilities. She turned from Sei and took a sip from her cup, as if to relieve her thoughts. She refused to be caught off-guard by someone like Sei. She refused to let her even take a tiny hint of her thoughts or her feelings. Like the last time. 'That American,' Eriko thought.

"You… didn't follow her around again, did you, Sei?" Youko asked with a somewhat displeased look on her face.

"What? Me?" Sei said, feigning innocence. "Follow Eriko?" She broke into laughter. "Who told you that?"

"You did," Youko said candidly as she took her cup.

"Aiee…" Sei huffed. "Did you have to say that?"

Eriko giggled. Sei's face seemed funny.

Sei sighed heavily and looked at Youko. "To make you feel a pinch better, I haven't told anyone. Besides, if I followed her around, I have my reasons."

"Such as…?" Eriko said.

"Look, to clear things, I didn't really have the intention of following you," Sei explained to Eriko. "If I discovered what's going on between you and her, whatever it is, it was an accident."

"Sei…" Eriko said. She wanted to get upset over the matter, but she could not seem to bring herself into being so. Come to think, it was rather amusing.

They have come a long way, after all.

"It was supposed to be a secret, Sei," Youko said sternly. "Can you not be discreet?"

"What made you do so, anyway?" Eriko asked.

Sei raised her hands up, as if to surrender.

"Chances are," Youko guessed. "You got curious… because she looks like Sachiko."

"Two things," Sei hinted. "One, that's not my main reason; and two, Sachiko, but not exactly her."

"What?" Youko and Eriko chorused with equally-confused faces.

"You have heard about the news on Princess Isolde Akira, haven't you?" Sei said.

Youko and Eriko nodded.

"Seen her pictures?"

Again, Youko and Eriko nodded.

"So… tell me… what did you see?" Sei asked.

As Youko fell quiet, Eriko suddenly felt her heart stop at Sei's question. 'What… did… I see?' she asked herself. No, she did not have to ask that. It was simple. Sachiko and Hitomi bore similarities as Sachiko bore resemblance to the Crown Princess. If so, then, Hitomi and the Crown Princess bore the same, striking resemblance to each other as well… perhaps even at a stronger degree. And to bear that much resemblance… exhibits the likely possibility of them being one and the same.

And there they went again. Those thoughts she forbade herself from entertaining. She did not want to think against Hitomi, much less, think ahead of her. She wanted it to work, whatever relationship it was between them. And to give in to negative thoughts was not the way to it.

"You're telling us that Hitomi-chan and the Crown Princess are possibly related?" Youko said.

"Go straight to the point, Youko," Sei remarked. "It doesn't suit you."

"I'll say it," Eriko interrupted, slightly vexed by Sei's allusion. "You're implying that Hitomi and Princess Isolde Akira are likely to be the same person?"

"The clues are there," Sei said. "It's pretty obvious. No one can see it because… from the looks, it doesn't seem likely. You know, different hair, different eyes."

Eriko sighed heavily. Yes, she has thought of it. She just had to hear it from someone else that it added to the qualms in her head.

"Eriko…" Youko said, her voice sounding anxious.

"It's only a possibility, Eriko," Sei said. "Not the real thing. But even if it is, why does it bother you?"

Tsutako lifted her stare from the quiet, empty street before her. "I don't feel confident leaving you here on your own, really," she said.

"We've been parting ways here for a time now," Hitomi said as she observed the bus stop they were in. "You were never bothered about it before."

"That's because I don't say anything," Tsutako reasoned sternly, pushing her glasses back. "After the hype you caused in Lillian, everything's suddenly quieted down."

"That bothers you?"

"Maybe," Tsutako answered.

"I'm sorry."

Tsutako shook her head. "I said I'd help you, remember?" she said, smiling. "I always wanted to try an offbeat role. I guess… this is my chance at it."

A bus finally neared toward the stop.

Tsutako stepped forward as the bus slowed down. She turned to Hitomi. "Be careful, and watch out for trouble," she said.

"I will," Hitomi said.

* * *

The bus stopped; its door right in front of Tsutako.

"I'll see you on Monday, then," Tsutako bade and headed into the bus.

Hitomi watched Tsutako enter the bus and take her place at the seat by the second window. She waved back at Tsutako until the bus began to move from the shed. Her eyes followed the bus until it disappeared from sight. 'I should be getting home now,' she thought as she blindly, unmindfully veered left.

"Ouch!"

The impact caused Hitomi to take a step back and her glasses to move from place. 'Careless me,' she thought, taking it into account, and fixed her glasses. "I'm sorry," she apologized, bowing. "I should have watched my step." She lifted her head, then feeling stopped upon recognizing the person before her.

Shimako. She was standing before Hitomi, staring blankly back at her.

"Rosa Gigantea," Hitomi said, guising the sudden, minimal surge of uneasiness she felt. She feared making the wrong move as she might lose Shimako again.

"H-Hitomi," Shimako stuttered as her face turned pale. "E-Excuse me. I have to go." She bowed and stepped past Hitomi.

"No," Hitomi said firmly as she grabbed Shimako's arm on impulse.

This has to end. This has to end now.


	17. DixSeptieme

_'May… we go somewhere quiet?'_

Hitomi's voice seemed cold when she said this earlier, despite its courtesy. As cold as her grasp around Shimako's wrist.

Shimako trudged on as Hitomi led her across the path of stone. Hitomi's grip was tight. So tight, that Shimako was compelled to follow Hitomi's fast pace and force, fumbling once, twice, and still counting. But the distance they have covered seemed to have worn out the uneasiness she had felt toward the tall girl as well as the urge to escape from grasp.

The two passed by the bushes and into a shaded field of trees, scattered rays of light piercing through the patches of leaves. They walked along the obscured path until they reached the remote, open space by the glistening pond underneath the sunny afternoon sky.

Then, they stopped.

Hitomi released Shimako's wrist and took a few steps further, back unturned. She was silent, as if waiting for Shimako, who was trying to catch her breath.

Bent slightly, Shimako took one final, hefty exhale as she glanced at the faint, reddish traces around her wrist. She stood straight, eyes momentarily set toward Hitomi, whose back was still turned from her. She was exhausted, her knees told her, but she wanted to speak to Hitomi now… as her uneasiness has momentarily subsided.

"I ask pardon for my rudeness, Shimako …" Hitomi said, back still unturned.

'S-Shimako …' Shimako wondered. Hitomi called her Shimako. Her knees seemed to weaken more upon the sound of Hitomi's voice, pronouncing her name.

Rudeness… As far as Shimako knew, Hitomi had done nothing wrong. In fact, she felt she should be saying those words.

"I have been making you feel uncomfortable, haven't I?"

Yes, this was true, but Shimako opted not to answer. "I'm fine now, Hitomi-san," she said, looking around the quiet, empty surrounding for a moment. She was somewhat thankful that Hitomi had acted stubborn enough to have brought Shimako here, at an environment contrary to what seemed to lurk inside of her, perhaps the both of them, to consider. But… why did Hitomi? Shimako wanted to ask, but…

"Then…" Hitomi said, a sharp hint of reluctance in her voice. "May I ask… why you didn't want to see me?"

"Hitomi-san--"

"Please?"

Shimako sighed as the pressure quickly began to build inside her. She did not want to divulge anything to anyone. Not even to the person involved. This was her character. But… if she would not tell Hitomi, how will she understand? Shimako breathed in. "Because," she began to speak, hesitantly, nervously, tilting her head toward the ground.

She had to say it now.

"Because… you remind me of her…"

There.

She said it.

It was then she felt part of the weight draw out of her chest.

Hitomi dwelled in the silence of the pond side for a moment, the firm look in her eyes turning hampered as she kept her distance from Shimako. "The depth of it in your heart," she said in a frail, reluctant tone. "… Is beyond my reach…"

Shimako gasped upon those words and lifted her head toward the unturned girl a few steps from her. Reach. To have heard it and the rest of those words… Her cheeks… she could not stop their urge to warm.

Hitomi.

Why would she say such things?

"You've changed since that summer…" Hitomi said, tilting her head.

"A-Akira…?" Shimako uttered. The name escaped from her lips at her heart's sudden skip. Hitomi knew about that summer. The summer Akira left. Hitomi. It was clear now. To have overlooked this truth was deliberate. Shimako had known it deep inside her but refused to acknowledge it. She believed that who she had seen before her then… was a stranger who simply resembled Akira. No more. No less. Her cheeks suddenly burned as her vision began to blur. No. She tried to control herself. But a tear fell from one eye, then another from the other. No. She tried to control herself again. She was not supposed to cry. But the tears kept falling beyond her control, down toward the blurred, grassy earth below her.

She wanted those feelings of hurt and resentment. She wanted them, as to tell Akira how much and how long, then blame her for everything. She had waited for this.

"I did not wish to leave," Hitomi said, the weariness suddenly apparent in her voice. "Please… do believe me."

The sound of Akira's voice…

The will to refrain seemed to have broken its walls at the sound of it.

All those feelings seemed to have been melted by her tears, exposing the longing that had remained frozen beneath it after all those years. "Akira," Shimako called out, as she blindly hurled herself toward Akira, arms tightly enfolding the tall girl's back.

* * *

"What exactly did Hitomi-chan tell you?"

Eriko shrugged. "She said it was fine," she answered.

"And?"

"That's all," Eriko said.

"That's all?"

Eriko glanced at Youko for a moment, then looked ahead again. Yes, that was all. She respected Youko's opinion on Hitomi's brief reply, as she has known her friend to have a liking for detail. By now, Eriko had become accustomed to Hitomi's character, saying very little at times or, otherwise, saying much. But she could not deny that sometimes she wished Hitomi would say more when she wanted to hear more from her. "I'm fine with it," Eriko said, smiling. "Really."

"How can you stay fine with it?" Youko asked. "If Hitomi-chan won't tell you anything, how will you know? How long are you willing to stay on like this?"

Eriko sighed, taking a moment before speaking. "I told you," she said calmly. "It's fine."

"That isn't you, Eriko… Really, that isn't you."

"Are you implying I can't change?"

Youko shook her head. "I'm sorry if I made you think so," she said. "I only wanted you not to overdo it like you did with Yamanobe-sensei."

Eriko giggled. It seems Youko the meddler has taken her friend's situation and Hitomi's into her to-pry list. She was right to say so about Eriko's chapter with Yamanobe-sensei. True enough, Eriko had given him more than enough attention. And when she found it was not meant to be, she felt her world come to a sudden stop. She could not blame Youko for meddling and worrying about her. In fact, she was grateful.

"I see you've overcome it," Youko said.

"I appreciate your concern, Youko," Eriko said. "Really."

The two suddenly took notice of the new ad in black and white shades on the building opposite their side of the street as they stopped for a moment.

Picture perfect -- was the right word to the billboard.

Eriko recognized its model. It was Alessa Qi, now known as Lady Godelieve, the young wife of Lord Godelieve, a French nobleman. Lady Godelieve is exquisite, Eriko thought. Exquisite, that even if she dressed in the grubbiest and drabbest of rags, she would still stand out.

The right choice and one she could prefer, as Eriko would describe briefly.

"Lady Godelieve is beautiful, isn't she?" Youko said.

Eriko nodded.

The two then resumed walking along the sidewalk.

"Lady Godelieve is the complete package," Youko said. "It's a known fact in France that she has turned down numerous proposals from famed personalities to noblemen to royalty, male or female, from France or from other places… It's also a known fact she never loved Lord Godelieve."

"Never?" Eriko said. This, she has yet to hear.

"Prince Degare openly admitted a few years ago that he was interested in her," Youko explained. "But then, Lady Godelieve wasn't interested in him." She paused for a moment. "Rumor has it that she was in love with the Crown Princess, but there was not enough evidence to prove it."

"Oh…" Eriko uttered, slightly tilting her head, face suddenly turning a hint pallid and expressing a hint of gloom, upon hearing Youko's words. There seemed to be something in her chest that made her feel uncomfortable. There was nothing wrong with what Youko said. Eriko saw no need to feel as such, but it seems… she could not help it.

Lady Godelieve could have anyone turning to her, even those from distant shores.

That much attractiveness Eriko saw she could never compete with. Dekochin, to put it in Sei's words.

Wait.

What was she thinking?

Curse that Sei.

"Then, she surprised France some months later by announcing to the public that she had married Lord Godelieve in Monaco," Youko continued. "Quite the whirlwind, but then, it's not what some people think. That number can include me, but meddlesome as I am, personally, it's not something I should care about." She glanced at Eriko, who seemed to have been absorbed by her silence. "Something wrong, Eriko?"

Eriko broke from her thoughts and shook her head. Youko was right. It was not something she, too, should care about.

"Funny," Youko said, smiling. "I thought you wouldn't consider Royal Blood."

"I still don't," Eriko said flatly.

"Really?" Youko said, as if to tease. "Your voice tells me otherwise."

Eriko frowned. No. That was not it. That was not it at all.

Was it?

"Their resemblance to each other troubles you, doesn't it?"

Eriko sighed heftily. Her sullied mind was at it once more. She did not want to admit as the reason was shallow. She did not want to seem as if she only liked Hitomi on the surface. She liked Hitomi beyond that. But upon seeing the image of Princess Isolde, right then, she felt the same, the same feelings she had for Hitomi… that it troubled her.

Could she only have been infatuated with Hitomi that she suddenly bore the same for a person with a striking resemblance to her?

Or… suppose Sei is right. Could they be the same person after all? Is this why… she suddenly felt disturbed upon hearing what Youko had said earlier about Lady Godelieve and Princess Isolde?

Eriko tried to erase those expansive, troubling thoughts from her. She did not want to think about any of it. A princess is not on her list. And there never will be.

Princess Isolde is not an exception. And… Hitomi is not Princess Isolde.

"Grasp only things within reach, Eriko," Youko said, placing her hand on Eriko's shoulder. She paused for a moment, lifting her hand from Eriko. "Let's leave it at that, shall we?"

* * *

It was fine now. And after a long exchange of stories, the two have stayed silent as they walked along the busy sidewalk.

Shimako quietly glimpsed at Hitomi as they walked side by side. She has not turned to the tall girl as close ever since she suddenly started avoiding her. It was over now as everything that was to be resolved between them has been resolved and everything that was to be answered has been answered earlier. Shimako was thankful Hitomi, no, Akira had been stubborn enough to force her into hearing her out.

Stubborn and courageous… what she could not be then. She turned from Hitomi, eyes suddenly spotting a couple a few meters away, about to walk past them as they were coming from the opposite direction. They seemed happy. Happy, as they walked hand in hand. Shimako removed her stare from them as they walked past. She glanced at Hitomi, who seemed oblivious of neither the couple's existence on the sidewalk nor the existence of the sidewalk itself. Again, she turned from Hitomi, tilting her head. The image of the couple would not seem to leave her as her fingers motioned lightly and pensively in its bareness…

She sighed. What was she thinking?

Hitomi reached for Shimako's hand.

'E?' Shimako was stopped at the sudden feel of Hitomi's hand around hers. 'Akira…' she thought, feeling uncomfortable for a few seconds before finally responding with a grasp. Hitomi's hand has warmed now, its firm grip seeming to tell her that it was fine. She lifted her head to glimpse at Hitomi again.

Could Hitomi have read her mind?

Hitomi glimpsed back at Shimako and smiled.

Shimako's cheeks slightly reddened. That smile has not changed. Not one bit.

Hitomi shyly turned from Shimako and focused on the way ahead.

Shimako smiled to herself as she looked forward. Even that bashfulness has not changed one bit. Hitomi's silence remained unbroken as seconds turned into minutes, but to Shimako, it was fine. The warmth of her hand was enough.

The two soon passed by a shop, where a poster of dark shades was posted on its window.

Hitomi suddenly released Shimako's hand and stepped closer to the shop window. Her eyes seemed to have been fixed on the poster.

Shimako sighed upon the abrupt absence of Hitomi's grasp and moved next to Hitomi. She looked at the poster as well, taking a few seconds before recognizing the familiar face on it.

"Hitomi, Shimako-chan."

Shimako and Hitomi turned to the shop entrance and saw Eriko and Youko standing by. They seemed to have exited the shop as both of them had shopping bags with them.

Shimako and Hitomi bent to give their respect.

"It's unusual to be seeing you together," Eriko said.

"We met along the way," Shimako said casually.

"Hitomi-chan," Youko interrupted. "Eriko might need a hand with a few things in her apartment. Since you're tall enough, can you help her with them?" Then, she placed her hand on Eriko's shoulder.

Eriko glanced at Youko.

Youko nodded.

Hitomi reluctantly turned to Shimako.

"It's fine, Hitomi-chan," Shimako said, now referring to Hitomi with a different honorific. "Eriko-sama needs your help." She noticed a sudden change in Hitomi -- there was a gentle glow in her eyes. It was something Shimako has not seen in her childhood friend before that it fascinated her. But then… she knew it was not her doing. Alongside her fascination, came that worry.

"Thank you for your time, then," Hitomi said, bowing. "I'll see you on Monday."

"You're welcome. I'll see you then," Shimako said, watching Hitomi as she joined Eriko. She felt the heaviness grow in her chest.

"We'll be on our way," Eriko said. "I'm sorry for the abruptness, Shimako-chan."

"It's fine, Eriko-sama," Shimako said. "Please take care."

"I'll keep Shimako-chan company," Youko said. "Go on."

Hitomi waved goodbye as Eriko tugged her, as if to tell her they were to leave. She smiled back at Eriko as they started to leave.

Shimako watched as Eriko and Hitomi walked away from sight. She remained calm, covering the sadness of parting and that worry sounding within her. That gentle smile Hitomi gave to Eriko. That glow in her eyes. Shimako never worried like so whenever Hitomi spent time with other people. But why is it…?

Why is it that when she saw her come with Eriko, she felt this bout of restlessness?

Was it because of what she had seen?

And… is it only restlessness she felt?

"Shimako-chan," Youko suddenly spoke. "That meet… wasn't by chance, was it?"

* * *

_…I realized your sincerity when you confessed to me of your feelings for the princess. I understand you, and as a person of sound judgment, I do not see reason to condemn you for them…_

It has only been less than a year since her last visit to Japan. Lady Godelieve recalled it was for a photo shoot, the second time, to be more specific. She has been to this place four times. This was her fifth, but it would be her first time to stay longer than a week.

"Mr. Yoshikawa called again about your appointment, regarding the changes in your schedule," the lady in the coat and tie said as she lightly drew on the screen of her PDA with the stylus on her right hand. "I'll take note of this here, so I won't forget to remind you. Tomorrow will be a busy day for you." She paused for a moment, as if thinking. "I really think we should have stayed in the hotel. Much more convenient, if you ask me."

Lady Godelieve listened to the lady, who sat on the other side of the car, but did not turn to her as her dark eyes blankly remained focused through the window of the white limousine they were in. Not even the moving view outside would keep her thoughts from flowing.

"Look, this isn't your first or your second time in Japan," the lady said. "You shouldn't be thinking so much."

Lady Godelieve finally withdrew her stare from the window and relaxed on her side of the car seat. "I was just going over a few things," she said, a hint nervous. "A few of… perhaps, unwanted things."

"Contemplating a part of your life, I see."

Lady Godelieve sighed.

"It has been a while, Lady Godelieve," Melisent said. "If it has been settled as you said so, I'm sure they would want to see you."

Lady Godelieve shook her head. "Maybe. Maybe not. I left a mess back in the palace. Then, I married a man I hardly knew to get away from it all."

"The man you hardly knew had been good to you even after marriage," Melisent said. "Lord Godelieve had always wanted you to be happy. He knew he would have to return you to them one day…" She paused for a moment. "As first of his aides, I was told to make sure it happens."

"The king's health is declining. He and the queen raised me after my parents died in the fire," Lady Godelieve explained, then recalling the memory that had once been painful for her. "It was hard to cope on my own, and I'm indebted to them, Melisent. It's not because Maxence told you to."

"And I assume what His Majesty told you could be the reason we have to stay longer?"

Lady Godelieve did not answer. This was supposed to be her alibi for staying longer than scheduled. But her reasons do not stop there. This lengthened her silence as she looked through the window once again.

The limousine was nearing the forefront of the gate of the Chantal.

"I haven't been around you long enough to know, so," Melisent slipped the stylus back to the PDA. She put the device down and glanced at Lady Godelieve. "Are the rumors true?"

"True?"

"You fell in love the Crown Princess, didn't you?"

Lady Godelieve turned from the window and nodded without much thought. She was not going to deny this anymore. Not even the fact that she still is.

"Does she know?"

"She does," Lady Godelieve said. "But…"

"But…?"

"She told me she couldn't return the same feelings," Lady Godelieve said.

"She rejected you?" Melisent said, raising a brow, as if in disbelief.

"You don't believe it?"

"No," Melisent replied straightforwardly. "It must have taken a lot of self-control to reject someone like you. Her Highness has some nerve."

Lady Godelieve suddenly broke into a giggle upon Melisent's words, then sighing. "Aki-chan struggles with a strange loneliness, Melisent. Strange, that not even she could tell what would ease it. And we grew up together…. I guess that should explain it."

The two fell silent again.

The white limousine soon slowed down to a stop as it reached the entrance of the royal mansion.

* * *

The princess has not yet returned.

Lady Godelieve glanced at the view through the window. It was already dark outside. Back in the palace, Isolde would be home before dark. It was not her to be out to late, so Lady Godelieve thought.

"Degare won't return for another week," the Queen said. "Perhaps longer. Jean Aimeri wanted him to tour Turkey after the conference."

"Shouldn't the Crown Princess represent His Majesty instead of him?" Melisent asked. "She is next in line to the throne, after all."

"Aki-chan is too young to attend conferences, I'm afraid," the Queen answered. "If she were a few years older, she could."

Lady Godelieve listened to the exchange of thoughts between Queen Adelais and Melisent but did not bother joining them. Their conversation was not of her interest.

Nothing, right now, seemed to interest her. Nothing about this room. Nothing at all.

Guilbert approached them as he entered the room. He bowed before them and said, "_Princesse Isolde est arrivée_." He stepped aside as the princess entered the room.

Lady Godelieve suddenly stood, her eyes locking on to Isolde as she approached.

* * *

**Foreign Phrase Notes:**

_**Princesse Isolde est arrivée**_**. **

**-- **Princess Isolde has arrived.


	18. DixHuitieme

**Rikka's Note: **_I was supposed to post these notes in my blog, but for easier access, I placed the notes here instead. I used a few fencing terms in the italicized scene below the line. For those who are not too familiar with the sport, here are the definitions of the following terms:_

_**Arret a bon temps **__– or Stop Hit; actually a form of counterattack which allows a fencer to move against the opponent's incoming attack_

_**Conversation **__– the exchange of play between blades_

_**En garde**__ – starting position of fencers in a fencing bout_

_**Engagement**__ – blade contact_

_**Insistence**__ – a forced attack through a parry_

_**Lamé**__ – an electrically-conductive jacket worn by foil and saber fencers ( or sabreurs)_

_**Manchette**__ – a special glove cover worn specifically by sabreurs on their weapon hand; worn in conjunction with the lamé_

_**Opposition Parry** – deflecting an incoming attack without losing blade contact from the initial engagement_

_**Parry Quinte** – Parry #5, a parry which has different interpretations concerning the different schools of fencing (foil, épée, and sabre); in saber (such as the duel in the italicized scene below), the blade is to be held from above the head to prevent head cuts _

_**Plastron **– a partial garment worn under the lame or jacket for padding or safety_

_**Prise de Fer** – literally means "Take the Steel (Fr.)"; an engagement at which a fencer attempts to control the opponent's blade_

_An added note is that I "drew" out the scene using most terms concerning blade work than foot work. But this was to give a better focus on the duel, in which, among the three schools of fencing, the saber is used. In saber fencing, sabreurs rely most on foot work and less on blade contact. Parries are difficult to execute effectively, as the saber has a different set of standards (as compared with the standards in foil fencing) in terms of scoring and in terms of executing the proper attack and the proper parry._

_So… I suppose it ends here. Please read and… please feel free to tell me if I'm lacking anything. Thank you!_

* * *

_Parry Tierce._

_Isolde repositioned her grip of the saber and retreated after deflecting Degare's move. _

_En garde. _

_She stared firmly back at her brother. The light from the tip of Degare's saber reflected against her safety glasses, warning her again of the danger of coming in contact with it. Another drop of sweat fell toward the salle floor. No masks covered her face and her brother's. No lamés. No manchettes. No gloves. No protectors. No plastrons. No protective clothing. Only their blades._

_The look in her brother's eyes was resolved and clear as his moves. As she had known him, he was not one to yield easily. He would only yield upon defeat._

_Isolde admitted she would never match his skill. But she was not to show fear._

_Degare returned, advancing with another attack._

_Engagement._

_Conversation._

_Prise de Fer._

_Isolde fended herself against Degare's moves. Opposition parry. Arret a bon temps. It was a duel, but she would not attack him. She chose to only defend herself._

_Parry Quinte._

_Degare forced through Isolde's defense. Insistence. And Degare's blade drew blood with its sharpened tip._

_Isolde's blood._

Isolde reached to touch the side of her forehead -- a souvenir from her first duel and what was then the cause of her decision to end the duel as well as a rivalry her older brother alone had fabricated. She thought accepting his challenge was a form of respect. But this only showed the flaws of her judgment.

If she had _mal-parried_, perhaps the damage could have been greater. But to her, it did not seem to matter as much. The gash her brother had given her provoked her to strike back at him. If she had retaliated as so, one way or another, it was likely for her to repeat it, and this concerned her. Time has passed since that duel in the Palace's _salle_. Time has passed since the sharpened tip of Degare's saber came in contact with the flesh of her temple. The gash inflicted on the right side of her forehead was now a scar. But its memories have remained intact.

The rivalry had reached its point when he challenged her to a duel. The dispute for Alessa's affection, which has only turned to her. Isolde accepted her brother's challenge, out of esteem, and she accepted it for a friend she did not wish to be bound because of compromise.

Degare was wrong to think Isolde, too, harbored the same feelings. But Isolde admitted to herself that when Alessa confessed to her that day, she was uncertain. Whether yes or no, she was unsure. Confusion was the right word to it then, as far as her youthful sense could reach.

It was only now that the princess had begun to ask.

When Alessa confessed to her, what exactly did she feel? When Alessa told her of her marriage to Lord Godelieve, why exactly was she hurt? 'Did I… really…?' she asked herself. If she did not reject her, would she have been able to know what her feelings were? Would she have felt differently? What would have happened? How would things have been? Would she have come to Japan? Would she have discovered her mother's true roots? Would she have been able to know people who treated her kindly, regardless of rank? And would she and Eriko have met? Many questions crossed the princess' mind as she wondered about what could have been if she made another choice. But to think anymore of it was wasteful. The need to dwell on it was no longer necessary. The gap between her and Degare disappeared, as if it never came to them.

But then, her doubts would not leave her at all.

Quick to rise, quick to fall, as experience would have it.

Isolde sighed. Aside from the pressure of being heir apparent after her brother and her mother's absence in the midst of it, those memories were the reason she came to Japan. And Alessa's sudden arrival made her think of all these once more.

* * *

The Crown Princess' room.

Lady Godelieve gently closed the main door behind her and looked around the lounge. The Queen Mother was right to say that this room is relatively smaller than Isolde's room in Palais de Iris. But she seemed to feel a comforting atmosphere in it.

The room had a very different arrangement and theme, compared to hers and the other rooms in the Chantal that she has gone to. It was as if it were not part of the mansion at all. Classic and modern fusion. Somewhere in between. Very much fitting to Isolde's personality, so Lady Godelieve thought. She continued to further observe the details of the room as she walked on, then spotting a drawing book on one of the _chaise longues _of black and red. She picked up the drawing book and took a seat. She has not seen Isolde take hold of one ever since she was chosen to succeed _Le Roi de la France_. She glimpsed at the maroon and black cover of the drawing book and opened it, then beginning scanning through the pages.

On the third page was a candid, penciled portrait of a lady. A lady with a headband. She seemed to be smiling at someone or something next to her.

That smile…

The portrait was simple, yet beautiful, Lady Godelieve admitted. 'But Aki-chan would never draw like this,' she thought. She knew Isolde preferred sketching caricatures over still life. She would never take the time and the effort to draw someone or something as detailed as this, affective, even.

Except…

Lady Godelieve shunned the thought of it. But this person… who could she be? She stared at the portrait a little longer. Something about it seemed to make her curious. But something about it, too, presaged her.

The princess' eyes that watched over her have learned, in her absence, to lift themselves from her. And now, they were no longer hers.

Perhaps… Lady Godelieve was wrong in thinking a second attempt would be easier. She quickly closed the drawing book and put it back to where she found it. She decided to turn her attention somewhere else. Her eyes suddenly caught glimpse of the television set in the tinted glass case on the left side of the lounge.

* * *

The phone suddenly rang.

Isolde stood from the side of her bed and headed out, leaving the door open as she headed toward her study, to the desk where the phone was. Who could it be at this hour, she wondered. Aveline was not to call until the next evening, as she remembered. She picked up the earpiece and greeted, "Hello?"

"Aki-chan," a familiar voice came from the other line.

Isolde immediately recognized Sachiko's voice. "Sachiko-onee-sama…" she said.

"Is… something the matter?"

"I'm fine, Sachiko-onee-sama," Isolde answered.

"_Grandmaman_ called me earlier," Sachiko said. "She told me to help you for tomorrow."

"Help me?" Isolde said, pushing her glasses, a subtle hint of distaste on her face upon remembering the conversation she and the Queen Mother had after dinner. She had been persuaded earlier to grant, in her grandmother's words, a small favor for Lady Godelieve. She gave her assent, despite her objection toward the Queen Mother's request. It was a fact that Lady Godelieve never fails to win the Queen Mother's favor, no matter how complicated her request may be. In short, a yes or a no or any other answer made no difference.

"Aki-chan?" Sachiko said.

"I appreciate it very much, Sachiko-onee-sama," Isolde replied, cutting her thoughts. "I'm sorry for the abruptness and the trouble. The matter with Alessa was unexpected that I scarcely have been given any time for preparations." She found it quite odd that her grandmother asked Sachiko of all people. Nonetheless, she was thankful for it.

"It's fine, Aki-chan," Sachiko said. "Well, then, I'll see you again tomorrow morning."

"I'll see you tomorrow, Sachiko-onee-sama," Isolde said. "And thank you."

"_Bonne nuit_."

"_Bonne nuit, _Sachiko-onee-sama_,_" Isolde greeted back and put the receiver back in place. It was then she heard a faint sound coming from the sitting room.

Lady Godelieve turned off the gaming console and opened it, taking the game disc inside it. Isolde was an addict for video games, and she had a habit for leaving a game disc in the console after playing, Lady Godelieve recalled as she scanned for right case in the rack on the rightmost space in the glass case. Finding the right one, she placed the disc back in it and returned it to the rack. Then, she switched off the television set and resumed looking around.

"Is someone there?"

Lady Godelieve did not answer. But she stopped her steps.

A tousle-haired Isolde in pale blue pajamas entered the sitting room and stood a distance from Lady Godelieve.

Lady Godelieve stared back at the striking presence before her. Isolde, she thought as her heart skipped a beat. She wanted to say something, but not even a sigh would come out of her.

"Alessa," Isolde said. Her voice was calm and gentle as her distant stare.

"Aki-chan," Lady Godelieve said, taking a few reluctant steps toward Isolde but stopped midway. She felt frozen in her tracks, but she was not to show any sign of uneasiness or any other feeling similar to it.

The way the Crown Princess received her, the way she treated her that evening… it was as if nothing ever came between them. Lady Godelieve expected an indifferent treatment from a still distant, aggrieved Isolde, but there was not even a heavy trace of that person.

If the Crown Princess' unspoken anger could punish, then her apparent gentleness could kill from underneath.

* * *

_"I'm sorry for the abruptness, Shimako-chan…"_

Shimako heard these words one more time. 'It's not fine, Eriko-sama,' Shimako said in her thoughts. It was what she wished to answer but could not.

Akira's eyes glowed warmly upon seeing Eriko. Akira was unusually happy to see her; Shimako could tell even without asking. But happy as Akira may have been, Shimako could not find it within herself to feel the same for her. The thought of Akira being happy with someone else displeased Shimako that she could barely control it. She wished she was as confident as Eriko so she could tell Akira. But she knew that her feelings would only complicate matters.

Akira is happy with Eriko. And there was nothing more Shimako could do about it.

"There are no stars out again tonight."

Shimako tilted her head from the empty heavens. She heard her father's voice but did not turn.

"You haven't told me everything," the Shoguu Temple priest said as he approached to the space where his daughter stood.

Shimako remembered she had told her father about seeing Akira again but did not say more than that.

"You're happy to see her, I know. But there is something else," her father said, his voice turning unusually serious as the expression on his face.

Shimako did not say anything as she felt the unusual seriousness coming from her father. He was right to say so, she thought. He seemed to have a sixth sense when it came to matters unspoken.

"Could it be… because what you found didn't reach up to your expectations?" The priest placed his hand on Shimako's shoulder. "I know everything. There's no need to keep it from me… I had been watching you, you see, both of you."

Shimako sighed. Her father was right again. What she found did not reach up to her expectations. She hoped seeing Akira again would relieve the longing she had felt for the Crown Princess. But with what she had seen earlier, she felt her feelings will remain as they are. Undetermined. Unmeasured. Unrequited.

She turned to her father after a short moment of silence. "Otou-san… you did know Akira was here all along, didn't you?" she asked.

The Shoguu Temple priest stared back at Shimako and nodded. "I was among the very few people who were told of her arrival," he explained. "I wanted to tell you, but… I wanted it to come from Akira. I told her to tell you everything." He paused for a moment. "I must admit that even as your father, I don't know you very well. But I do know… that what you have become now was partly because of Akira… I'm sorry if I troubled you for it and for everything I have kept from you."

Shimako shook her head. "It's all right, Otou-san." What her father had kept from her indeed troubled her, but it was over now. There was no need to dwell on it. "If their departure had been sudden, there was reason for it to be. Akira has her reasons, too. And whatever reason it may be, it doesn't matter."

"Then… you haven't heard everything…"

Shimako gave her father a rather quizzical look. Have not heard everything… What exactly did he mean?

The Shoguu Temple priest breathed in. "Shimako, did you… ever wonder why the Queen Consort came here?" he asked.

* * *

The king stopped by a full-scale, mounted photograph in sepia tone on the wall on his right. It was a blown-up, candid snapshot of the late queen examining an indigent. It was during a mission in Africa, more than a year before giving birth to Isolde, so the king recalled.

Before the real Sawada Hitomi became Queen Consort and mother to the King of France's children, she was an accomplished doctor, noted as well for frequently volunteering in medical missions in different parts of the world. Her voluntary duties paved way for her and the king to meet, and it was at that encounter everything between them began, the king recalled.

"The Queen Consort was a noteworthy one, was she not?" Gaston remarked. "It is sad that Her Majesty's life had been cut short."

"Hitomi's health had begun to fail even before Isolde was born," the king said. "But it did not stop her from fulfilling her duties for France and for the people she wished to help. I hoped a brief rest in a quiet place in Japan would help her recover, but soon enough, I was to accept the truth that she would one day leave me because of it." He paused for a moment. "Isolde was hurt most, as she was not informed of her mother's illness. To her, her mother's death was sudden. I know that, too, caused quite an impact on her." He turned from the photograph on the wall and resumed walking, glancing past the other portraits and images and moving along the red-carpeted path. "Hitomi always wanted a balance of everything, Gaston," he continued after another short pause. "If Degare was to be taught the ways of royalty, Isolde was to be taught the ways of the common." And after speaking, his eyes suddenly caught the next painting on the wall on his right. His eyes narrowed at the sight of the lady in it, his cousin, Countess Odile.

Months after her disappearance, Countess Odile came to Palais de Iris and left a boy, barely a year old, to the Queen Consort. Then, she took off in the still of the night, never to be seen or heard from again. But even as King Jean Aimeri disapproved of this, he simply did not have a choice. It was a secret only the walls of Palace de Iris and its people had kept, not spoken of nor brought about as the years passed. King Jean Aimeri and the Queen Consort Hitomi treated him as their own son, then reaching a decision to formally adopt him. At that, they saw no need to discuss the secret anymore.

That boy was no less than Prince Degare.

Gaston lifted his head to stare and observe the portrait. "Prince Degare has his mother's features," he remarked.

King Jean Aimeri nodded in assent. "Hitomi and I promised to care for the prince before Odile disappeared again," he explained. "We treated him as our own, declared before the public and made it known to the family that he is our son."

"Your first child… and heir to the throne," Gaston said.

The king heaved out a sigh.

"A sigh could mean one or the other, Your Majesty…"

The king said nothing. He did not wish to determine what it meant.

"I am… not a believer of destiny, Your Majesty," Gaston said. "But I do believe this. A mother could be most likely to determine her child's future, regardless of how complicated matters would become. Neglecting Her Late Majesty's aspiration for balance, if I may assume, she could have believed strongly that Princess Isolde was born for the purpose of succeeding her father."

"I see you are a believer of maternal instinct, Gaston," the king remarked. That, too, was what he believed but did not consider it. With origins in disregard, Degare was his son, his and the Queen Consort Hitomi's, therefore, being next in line to the throne by birthright. Yet… if the Queen Consort knew better than he, could her intuition be the reason for her to take Isolde with her, not only to teach her child the ways of both of her parents' roots but to teach her in a manner unorthodox to the Royal Family of France? Could the Queen Consort have been secretly preparing her daughter for what she could have foreseen? King Jean Aimeri never considered the Queen Consort Hitomi's actions or their intent, as she kept her distance from his role as King of France. He simply gave her the necessary support.

He continued walking as Gaston followed him from behind.

"Pardon me for asking so, Your Majesty," Gaston said. "But… did Countess Odile tell Her Majesty who fathered Prince Degare?"

The king shook his head. "Whether the prince was fathered by a stranger or otherwise, it no longer matters," he reasoned. "The prince's biological origin is no longer in question."

"Even as His Highness took features from the Royal Lineage, even as his origin is no longer in question, it does not change the fact he was fathered by a stranger," Gaston said. "Prince Degare is entitled to the right of knowing the truth. So is Princes Isolde. I believe they are already of age to understand, Your Majesty."

* * *

"I was told you were here."

Isolde did not say a word of it, an indirect, yet subtle attack toward her as she had defied one of those rules Lady Godelieve, Alessa, for that matter, had set when they were younger. To keep anything from each other was disobedience. Though, Isolde had relayed a message to Lady Godelieve about her sudden departure for Japan, she never told her reasons for doing so. She readily admitted being blameworthy for it.

But, of those rules, come to think, Lady Godelieve seemed to have broken more than she did, more than once, more than twice…

"Aki-chan," Lady Godelieve said, somewhat exasperated. "Please say something."

"What would you want me to say?" Isolde asked.

Lady Godelieve shrugged and stood from Isolde's side and walked toward the window. "We… used to do this, remember?" she said, opening a small space between the curtains to peek at the dimness of the view outside.

Isolde pressed her palms against the edge of the _chaise longue_ and stared at the carpeted floor. Yes, she remembered. Back in the palace, when Lady Godelieve could not sleep, she would sneak to the princess' room. If she chanced upon Isolde awake, they would talk until they tired from it. If not, Isolde would find Lady Godelieve next to her in the morning. This routine went on even as they grew older, even after Lady Godelieve confessed to the princess of her feelings. It only stopped after Lady Godelieve left the palace.

"I surprised you, didn't I?"

Again, Isolde did not answer. It was impossible to hide from someone who knew every detail of her. Indeed, Lady Godelieve's sudden arrival surprised her, the masked aftershock of it being far from over, but she did not show any of it. Her composure toward Lady Godelieve hid a grave uneasiness from underneath. And underneath her gladness hid an uncertainty. She wished to speak, but she knew it was likely to lead to where she did not wish for it to lead.

"I wanted to see you again," Lady Godelieve said, closing the curtains and grasping them as she spoke. "And when I finally had the chance, I followed you here."

"I'm glad to hear that," Isolde said, smiling. "But Lord Godelieve --"

"Maxence gave me his consent," Lady Godelieve said before Isolde could finish, her hands slipping their grasp from the curtains, and turned around, her eyes avoiding the princess'.

"But… wouldn't it bother him? _Grandmaman _said you'll be staying a bit longer." Isolde said upon noticing the hint of sadness in Lady Godelieve's voice upon mentioning her husband.

"Maxence had always urged me to see you once in a while," Lady Godelieve answered, leaning against the curtained windowpane. "I kept no secret from him about my life in the palace."

"I see," Isolde said briefly. She did not need to ask further of what Lady Godelieve had meant. The growing uneasiness upon the further exchange of words prompted her to say more than she did.

"Maxence has been a good husband," Lady Godelieve said, as if stopping the silence from falling between her and the princess. "Even if I was too different for him, he… never made me feel that way."

"Lord Godelieve is a good man, Alessa. Loving him isn't difficult," Isolde said. "I might have acted as so upon learning of your sudden marriage, but I was relieved it was him."

Lady Godelieve's face slightly turned pale upon hearing Isolde's words, the sadness now more apparent as it reflected in her eyes. She gripped the drapery from behind her, as if to control herself. "Aki-chan," Lady Godelieve said, voice feigning composure in her option to switch topics. "The Queen Mother said she managed to trace the Queen Consort's roots."

The princess nodded. "My mother belonged to the Ogasawara Lineage," she said. "Mama never told me this, only the fact that she changed her family name to Sawada to escape her fate, as my grandfather arranged her to marry one of her cousins, and left to continue her medical studies in another country."

"And so the Queen Mother thought of tracing your roots…" Lady Godelieve said. "The Queen Consort wasn't quite a commoner after all."

"I understand why Mama kept this from me," Isolde said. "Perhaps… she didn't wish for Onii-sama or for me to have the same fate."

"But she ended up marrying your father, Aki-chan," Lady Godelieve reasoned. "Even if you are free from that fate, it doesn't make any difference. You were needed in the prince's place. I've known you since we were little. You wouldn't say anything. You'd do as told, and you'd do as expected of you… regardless of your feelings."

Isolde looked down to the carpeted floor. Lady Godelieve was right to say so. And from the tone of the older lady's voice, she could sense apprehension, much of it. Has time away changed Lady Godelieve in such a way that it affected her confidence toward her friend's ascent to the throne, Isolde wondered.

"I'm sorry to have said such things," Lady Godelieve said, her voice gaining composure once more. "Maybe I have been thinking about it too much."

Isolde shook her head. "It's fine. I should be asking pardon for the troubles I keep causing you, Alessa. If it… will make you feel better, then please… allow me hear you."

Lady Godelieve released the drapery from her hands and walked back to Isolde. She stopped to stand a breath's distance before the princess, placing one hand on her head. And as Isolde looked up in response, Lady Godelieve pulled her into a tight embrace.

* * *

One quick jolt.

'What… was that?' Eriko thought. The sudden, quick jolt prompted her system to stop for a second, then leaving her with a strong hint of unease. A vague unease, but so strong that it bothered her.

"Something wrong, Eriko?" Youko asked. "Did you happen to see a ghost pass by? You suddenly turned pale."

Eriko shook her head. "No… it's nothing," she answered, shrugging off the worry. "I think I should get some rest."

"Of course," Youko said. "We have quite a day ahead of us tomorrow." She stood to leave.

"Good night," Eriko said.

"Good night," Youko said. "Sleep well." Then, she walked out of the door.

Eriko stared at the door for a moment. It was especially unusual of her to ask someone to help her prepare for an occasion, much less, an occasion that simply had nothing to do with her. She knew deciding to ask Youko would not spare her from the questions her friend was likely to ask. But, meddlesome as she could be, Eriko thanked her for agreeing to help her and opting to spend the night in the Torii residence with her for it.

She turned from the door, placing her hand on her chest. The worry had not gone at all, so it seemed. 'Could… that have been you…?' she wondered.


	19. DixNeuvieme

Eriko looked through the last batch of evening gowns in front of her. No, she thought of the first. No, she thought of the second. No, she thought of the third. No, she thought of the last. Then, she shook her head. All of the gowns shown to her were beautiful, as her taste would have it, but simply none of them made enough impact on her to be chosen.

"Well?" Youko asked again, arms crossed as she stood behind Eriko.

Eriko sighed on her seat.

Youko gestured the young designer before her and Eriko for the gowns to be returned. "Still not in the mood, I see," she said as she placed a hand on Eriko's shoulder. "Take your time. Would you care for a second look at them?"

Again, Eriko shook her head.

"Your father had Iwao-sama design all of twelve of them to your liking," Youko said, referring to the woman before Eriko and her. "It's rather strange that you couldn't choose one at all."

"I'm sorry, Youko, Iwao-sama," Eriko said to Youko and Iwao-sama. "I can't decide which at all."

"Was that everything, Iwao-sama?" Youko asked Iwao-sama, whose face has turned rather pale upon Eriko's reaction toward her creations.

"There is one left," Iwao-sama said. "But having known Torii-san's distinctive and unconventional taste, I'm not sure if she will like it. So, I left it out."

"May we see it, Iwao-sama?" Eriko asked.

"A-At once," Iwao-sama stammered and quickly motioned her assistants to follow her.

Eriko and Youko watched and waited as Iwao-sama and her four assistants headed toward the room on their left.

"Is there something wrong, Eriko?" Youko asked. "You've always trusted Iwao-sama when there's no one else to match your taste."

"All those dresses were beautiful," Eriko answered. "Maybe I'm just not myself today."

"Not yourself… meaning..?" Youko said. "You've just turned down a dozen dresses, and you tell me you're not yourself. If you still haven't chosen, it can mean you don't want to go."

"Then, maybe I don't want to at all," Eriko said candidly.

"Now, isn't the person who once called Sei a pain being one herself?" Youko asked. "Backing out from an invitation isn't quite ladylike."

"If I said yes," Eriko said, slightly irritated by her friend's remark. "It doesn't necessarily mean I'm entirely in favor."

"Not entirely," Youko said. "In this case, you chose yes, but the entire truth of the matter is, you're somewhere between it and no. If you chose yes, then, it's because it bears more in your favor than the other. Am I right?"

"Maybe," Eriko replied. Youko was cross-examining her again, she thought.

Youko thought for a moment. "And… there could be others reasons for it," she added.

"Maybe," again, Eriko replied.

"Then, it's settled," Youko said. "That decision of yours doesn't only involve the trouble of '…or else' and the rest of your agreement with your father. But then, you can't quite figure the rest of 'why' yourself. Is that your point?"

Eriko tilted her head. She could have said at least maybe, but she chose not to answer. Saying a yes, a no, a maybe, or maybe not would not make any difference. Being friends for quite a number of years had give Youko the privilege to unlock the enigma in Eriko's thoughts.

"That is the other part of you showing."

"It's not," Eriko opposed in a flat, stern tone.

"If you say so," Youko said. "Being patient and rational toward most things is one of the assets of your rational side, Eriko. There, more often than not, you would know what to do and you would know what's to happen and how to handle the aftermath of it. I don't need to tell you… that to show the other side of your character can grant unfavorable consequence a little more freedom. You already know that."

"Yes… I do," Eriko said. Youko was right. That was her, Eriko. And if she showed that part of her because of an impulse that seemed to exceed her control, then it would be more difficult for her to control matters.

Iwao-sama soon returned, her string of assistants following her from behind with the last evening gown.

* * *

_Everything is ready. All I need is Her Highness…_

Sachiko heard Lady Godelieve's words in her mind as she waited for Isolde to come out of the fitting room. 'Ready,' she thought. 'All she needs is Her Highness…' "Ready" meant Lady Godelieve had prepared for everything up to the littlest of details. "All she needs is Her Highness" meant the preparations done were prior to Isolde's consent. Sachiko remembered a similar situation that happened to her a year ago and understood how Isolde felt. Being caught into a compromise without consent could have damaged Isolde's patience, one way or another, given that she and Sachiko are alike in more ways than one. But as the Queen Mother said, the Crown Princess may show a hint of resentment at first, but she would do as told in the end.

Perhaps… this is why the Queen Mother called for Sachiko.

The night before, the Queen Mother called, asking Sachiko to help Isolde prepare for a gala to be held the next evening. Gala? Though equally confident that Isolde would listen and obey her as well, Sachiko shared the same sentiment as Queen Adelais. Even before meeting her cousin, she had known Isolde for having quite the dislike for attending social gatherings that either she declined or avoided them more often than not. Could her words or her presence be the form of "internal preparation" the Queen Mother assumed that the princess would likely need aside from her own, Sachiko wanted to ask. But with all due respect, she gave her assent to Queen Adelais' request without further inquiry, not even a word further.

Before meeting for the first time, Sachiko had heard of Alessa Qi Jiao, the Lady Godelieve before marriage, through her father and had seen the beautiful woman in person once in a social function in Paris. As her father mentioned, it was said that Alessa often attended the formal functions in place of Isolde. As talks about the princess for having quite the streak for not appearing in affairs exclusively for the affluent, presumptions of being recluse, being antisocial, and worse, being subversive or superior at a very young age floated and spread about as well. And though uninterested and though these accusations were not meant for her… she seemed quite offended by them.

Whether the reaction was of blood relation or otherwise, Sachiko thought of declining such invitations as something she would likely do… if she would openly have it.

"You and Her Highness look very much alike," Madame Rieu, a short, somewhat podgy woman quite youthful in her late forties, suddenly spoke, interrupting Sachiko's thoughts. She had been staring quietly and intently at Sachiko the whole time.

"They say so," Sachiko said, hiding the embarrassment she felt toward the bubbly couturier's remark underneath. She was unaware that Madame Rieu had paused from making new drapery for the Chantal and that she had been observing her so keenly.

"Prince Degare told me you even act alike," Madame Rieu said. "He was not wrong to say so," She giggled. "You are… an Ogasawara?" she asked.

"Yes… I am," Sachiko answered.

"Ah," Madame Rieu uttered. "The Queen Consort's features have it. So does the Crown Princess'."

"You… knew she was an Ogasawara, Madame…?" Sachiko asked. Does an Ogasawara have a trademark of some sort, she asked herself. She did not seem to notice. Aside from her late grandmother and her, it was common knowledge in the Chantal and in the Palais de Iris that the Queen Consort's roots were only discovered three years after her passing.

"_Oui, oui,_" Madame Rieu said. "Queen Hitomi did not deprive me of this truth when I asked her. And so it became a secret between the two of us. I did not say a word of it, even after her passing." She sighed as her voice suddenly changed its mood, the ever-present smile on her face disappearing. "I did just as she told me."

"Why… if I may ask," Sachiko asked.

"Her late Majesty did not wish for her roots to be recalled, I'm afraid," Madame Rieu said. "She feared that her children might suffer the same fate as she, being arranged to a cousin of hers before meeting their father. I suppose you have heard of this tale as well."

"Yes," Sachiko said, nodding. "Yes, I have…" Her grandmother once mentioned this story to her. She, too, was bound to have the same. And as her late aunt, it was entirely against her wishes.

"The Ogasawaras are known to keep their heritage by all means necessary," Madame Rieu said. "This was what Queen Hitomi told me." Again, she turned to Sachiko. "The look in your eyes reminds me of hers, _Demoiselle_. I firmly believe you can do the same as well." Then, she meaningfully winked.

Sachiko watched Madame Rieu move away from her as the words played in her mind. Do the same… Defy a fate only man has installed upon her… She resented it but never actually attempted to decline it. Her aunt had been courageous enough to go against her father, but could she do the same against her own father as well? Madame Rieu's faith seemed deeper than hers at this.

"Lady Godelieve designed Her Highness' wardrobe," Madame Rieu finally spoke after a brief silence. Her voice had regained its cheeriness. "_Magnifique, _if I may say so_. _What was left for us to do here was to tailor it for Her Highness without her knowledge." She giggled. "Though Her Highness has not said a word on it, I could see she was surprised on the matter."

"Lady Godelieve seems so sure of what to do," Sachiko remarked. "Aki-chan disliked attending social gatherings, is it not so?"

"Ah," Madame Rieu uttered in assent. "Lady Godelieve knew Her Highness far better than anyone. Perhaps this is why."

"Far… better?" Sachiko said. Far better, meaning…? If Lady Godelieve is as precious to Isolde as the Queen Mother told her, then she has not mentioned anything about her at all. Sachiko has yet to hear everything.

"Lady Godelieve has been by Princess Isolde's side ever since her early days in Chinatown," Madame Rieu explained. "When Lady Godelieve's parents died, she came to live with the Royal Family in the Palais de Iris. Her Highness and Lady Godelieve became closer to each other as the years passed, more so, after the Queen Consort died… This may be good, but… you see… their closeness was the start of the trouble."

"Trouble… Madame…?" Sachiko said. Trouble that involved familiarity… too much of it, perhaps… Recalling what Youko had told her, word of mouth in France has it that as Prince Degare openly admitted his feelings for her, Lady Godelieve was in love with the Crown Princess, but it has never been proven nor confirmed. Though it was not of her concern, Sachiko was aware of the possible consequences her cousin may encounter, true or otherwise, more so, knowing that it involved a woman, a married one at that.

"I will tell you straight, _no_… as a bonus for bearing much resemblance to Her Highness," Madame Rieu said rather playfully with a smile to match. "Lady Godelieve fell in love with Her Highness. It is not a rumor among us here and in the palace in France. It is… to put it… a known fact."

A known fact… Sachiko frowned upon hearing this. On the contrary, she did not find it amusing at all. What seemed to be a harmless rumor to her was actually a detrimental truth. If it were indeed a known fact as the Madame Rieu described it, then everyone in the palace, including the Crown Princess, was aware of it. And if the Crown Princess were aware of it, then… what did she say? How did she feel? What happened? Could this be the heavier reason she resented and the reason no one ever mentioned anything about Lady Godelieve?

Sachiko has yet to hear everything.

Julienne, Madame Rieu's young and somewhat boyish head assistant, and the princess' stylist, suddenly exited through the curtains on the mirrored wall behind the dais on the right side of the room "It's done, Madame Rieu," she declared, bowing and then pulling half of the curtains to the side.

Isolde walked to the middle of the dais, the back of her dinner suit reflecting on the mirrors on the wall behind her. The classic, yet femininely-designed and tailored suit fit her aptly, dark shade complementing her pastel complexion. A slightly loose sleeved coat was over a collared shirt and tie. The length of her slacks measured a little beyond the ankles.

Sachiko broke into a smile as Isolde stood bashfully in her suit. _Magnifique_, to sponge Madame Rieu's words. The suit was made flawlessly. Lady Godelieve and Madame Rieu had indeed done well.

"Ah," Madame Rieu uttered. "Hmmm…" she uttered as she observed the length of the princess' pants. She went up the dais and circled around the Isolde, once, twice. Then, from behind, she asked the princess to spread her arms.

The princess did as told.

Madame Rieu then asked Isolde to remove her coat.

Again, the princess did as told.

Madame Rieu circled Isolde again, once, twice, as she observed. Then, she nodded and gestured the princess to wear her coat once more. "I will have to adjust your measurements, Your Highness," she finally spoke after a moment of critical examination of the dinner suit. "It seems you have reached the allowances I added."

"Does it feel a little uncomfortable, Your Highness?" Julienne asked the princess. "You seemed uncomfortable in the fitting room a few minutes ago. We even took longer to change than usual."

"Is there… something wrong with the suit?" Madame Rieu asked. "It is… supposed to be more comfortable than all the other dresses we made for you… Not to say they are uncomfortable at all, that is…"

"No, it's fine, Julienne, Madame Rieu," Isolde replied, shaking her head.

"Then… is it because it is the first time to wear a suit," Sachiko said, a bare hint of teasing in her voice. "Or… is it because it will be your first time to appear in public?"

"Either one," Isolde answered, smiling upon Sachiko's words. "Or maybe both."

"Let's see," Julienne said, stroking her chin. "Only a few little changes, Your Highness, and we're all done."

* * *

The clock on the wall shifted its minute hand another notch upward. Another minute diminished for the afternoon to draw closer to evening.

"Sachiko and Aki-chan, they bear many similarities, don't they?"

Lady Godelieve lifted her stare from the evening gown spread beside her and turned to Queen Adelais, who sat on the chair across her. "_Oui, Grandmaman,_" she agreed. "I didn't think what they say of _Demoiselle _Ogasawara is true. Now that I've reconsidered, maybe it does run in the blood."

"Hitomi's bloodline runs stronger in Aki-chan," the Queen Mother remarked. "Her approach toward matters sets her from the rest of the De Croix lineage. Perhaps… this is why the people seem to prefer her over Degare even before he declined the throne."

"_Grandmaman_," Lady Godelieve said. "When is the prince coming back?"

"If he wishes to return now, he will," Queen Adelais said. "If he wishes not to return, he will return after a few days or weeks or months or later. Degare is a free spirit." She giggled. "Not even the throne could keep him, I'm afraid."

Lady Godelieve feigned a smile. Prince Degare… King Jean Aimeri described his son to be a free spirit, not to be dictated upon nor kept by any form of responsibility. The prince's standpoint has not changed, so Lady Godelieve thought. He will always have it his way.

"Do you still feel apprehensive toward him?"

Lady Godelieve shook her head. Her marriage to Lord Godelieve gave her emotions more severe than those feelings she had toward the prince that she no longer felt the unease toward him. "I'm…" she said. "…glad to find that he and Aki-chan are in better terms now."

"Everyone is," Queen Adelais said in assent. She stood from her seat and approached the light blue dress on the bed. She reached to have a feel of the dress. "Lady Godelieve will be the most beautiful woman tonight, as always," she remarked with a smile. "I'm sure Aki-chan will share the same opinion."

"Aki-chan rarely says anything about how I look, _Grandamaman_," Lady Godelieve said.

"But surely, you would want to hear her."

Lady Godelieve nodded. Of course, she would want to hear her say such things. But after seeing her last night, she realized it would be more difficult to have the princess speak of words she has been wishing to hear. "_Grandmaman_," she started to ask. "Has Aki-chan been telling you of the people she meets?"

"People… She doesn't discuss the people she meets outside the Chantal. Except for…" the Queen Mother thought for a moment. "Ah, never mind that!" she finally said with a smile. "It isn't a matter we should concern about at the moment, is it?"

Again, Lady Godelieve feigned a smile. She doubted the Queen Mother wanted to tell her of it at all. But out of courtesy, she spoke no further. "Yes… you're right, _Grandamaman_," she said. She glanced at the clock on the wall.

The clock shifted its minute hand another notch. Another minute has passed as the afternoon drew closer to evening.

* * *

"Her Highness is done, _Demoiselle_," Julienne said and stepped aside, opening the dressing room door.

Sachiko placed the sketchbook on the center table of tinted glass and stood from the _chaise lounge _upon Julienne's announcement. After hours of preparation, Isolde was finished.

Isolde approached, now dressed properly for the affair. Her tousled hair tamed to a degree. Silvery gray metallic frames placed before her eyes. "Thank you very much for your help, Julienne," she said.

"My pleasure to be of assistance to Her Highness," Julienne said, bowing before the princess. "I ask to take leave now."

"You may be dismissed," Isolde said. Then, she turned to Sachiko, whose stare seemed to have affixed itself on her. The fact that her cousin has not seen her dress quite as properly made her feel uncomfortable.

Sachiko stepped forward. "Julienne did well covering your scar," she remarked, reaching to adjust the knot of Isolde's tie. "Are you ready?"

"Maybe," Isolde answered rather hesitantly.

"Eriko-sama would have wanted to see you dress so suitably," Sachiko remarked, as if to tease.

"Torii-san would not take a princess, I'm afraid," Isolde said, the sadness apparent in her voice.

"But if she saw through Hitomi, it would make no difference," Sachiko reasoned, breaking into a comforting smile. "If her feelings for you do not change after she learns the truth, then… her intentions have been pure since the beginning."

Isolde sighed. The truth would indeed hurt Eriko, but Sachiko had a point. Only the truth would tell her of the sincerity of Eriko's feelings. She has faith in Eriko, but doubts on how she may deal with the aftermath would not rest.

"Eto…" Sachiko began to speak after a short pause as she took her seat once more on the _chaise longue_. "I've known you never liked gatherings. I… quite understand how it feels." She gestured Isolde to sit on the space beside her.

"Alessa is the guest-of-honor, and she wants me to go with her," Isolde said and approached to sit beside Sachiko. "I think of granting her request as a small favor compared to what she had done for me when it came to invitations."

"Yes, I have heard of that," Sachiko said. "When she was still in the palace, she often came to social galas in your place."

Isolde smiled shyly upon Sachiko's words. Yes, it was true.

"_Grandmaman_ introduced me to Lady Godelieve this morning, before meeting you," Sachiko said. "Her elegance still astounds me, if I may say so."

"To hear it from someone as yourself is unlikely," Isolde remarked.

"Is that… so bad?" Sachiko asked.

Isolde shook her head. "I simply find it surprising that you're vocal about it," she said.

"You grew up together," Sachiko reasoned. "I don't need to expound on it, do I?"

"Everyone else says the same thing," Isolde said. "I've heard the rest more than one hand can count."

"It's not quite surprising that she knows you very well," Sachiko said. "And… it doesn't quite surprise me that you never told me anything about her at all."

"If I did… would you have wanted to hear everything?" Isolde asked.

"If I am to completely understand you," Sachiko answered. "Then, I should know everything about you." She paused, as if to think for a moment. "Lady Godelieve… told me of the years you had been together in the palace," she continued. "I thought I had heard everything from her… until I learned of something she never mentioned to me."

Isolde said nothing. Someone from the Chantal must have told Sachiko. But how her cousin learned of it, the princess had no intention of asking.

"It… has been a few years, has it not?" Sachiko asked.

"You're right, Sachiko-onee-sama," Isolde said, sighing. "It… has been a few years…" She stopped, her voice fading, as she sank into her thoughts.

"Could you… have wanted to discuss it?"

A knock suddenly interrupts their conversation.

"_Entrer, sil vous plais,_" Isolde said.

Guilbert entered the room and approached. "_Bon soir, Votre Alesse, Demoiselle _Ogasawara," he greeted with a bow.

"_Bon soir, _Guilbert," the two greeted in response.

"Lady Godelieve will be ready in half an hour," Guilbert said. "She requests you to wait for her downstairs."

* * *

The car stopped before the red light.

The shifting view from the window came still. And the ad from the other side of the street was in full view. Eriko recognized the face on the clothing line ad. Lady Godelieve, her face was on another billboard. She looked beautiful in it, as always, Eriko thought. But come to think… when did she not look beautiful?

_Rumor has it that she was in love with the Crown Princess, but there was not enough evidence to prove it._

Hearing this made Eriko feel uncomfortable. Prior to her marriage, Lady Godelieve was listed as one of the most eligible ladies. Aside from being a possessor of a beautiful face, she was intelligent. Compassionate. Well-loved. If it were true that Lady Godelieve harbored feelings for someone as equally known as the Crown Princess, despite being a woman, she was eligible enough. But then, she married Lord Godelieve. The rumor was never proven, but unlike it, a known fact was that she never loved him.

If she never loved him, then… could the rumor have been true all along?

If it were a match, Eriko would undoubtedly lose to her.

Eriko spurned the thought of it. She was not to care for or about these thoughts. There was no reason for her to entertain them. But somehow, she could not bring herself to shake them from her mind.

_The clues are there… _

Could Sei be right? Could it be the reason Eriko felt the very same for the Crown Princess and for Hitomi?

The traffic light signaled green, and the car began to move again.

The still view came to pass Eriko's eyes.

"Eriko?"

Eriko finally shifted her focus from the car window on her side to her father on the right.

"A little too quiet, aren't we?"


	20. Vingtième

Isolde peered at the bulky silver timepiece around her wrist. In a matter of minutes, Lady Godelieve needed to return.

The night did not go so well. Before they even reached the venue, they were informed that there were members of the press scattered about. It was a private affair. But as Lady Godelieve would say, an affair as such can be temptation. Somehow, they will always manage to gain access.

"Not surprising being out on socials still bothers you," Lady Godelieve remarked with a smirk on her face.

"Perhaps that about me hasn't changed," Isolde said, glancing at Lady Godelieve from the side. Lady Godelieve's voice was calm, but she could feel the bout of hesitation underneath it.

Lady Godelieve turned to the princess for a moment. "The watch suits you nicely."

"Mr. Gautier sent it through Julienne."

"Exclusively for Her Highness," Lady Godelieve said.

Isolde nodded. Yes, that was right. To the famed Monsieur Fabrice Gautier, confidant of the late Queen Consort, the finest of his timepieces were made to be worn exclusively by the Crown Princess, as the recent one around her wrist. Isolde was rather embarrassed by the thought of it. Yet, such lavish privilege was the truth. "Monsieur Gautier did not have to send me another," she said in a rather discomfited tone. "It's not my birthday."

"To sense your appreciation by wearing his masterpieces is his pride," Lady Godelieve said. "Lavish as it may seem, allow him and to feel your appreciation for each one."

Isolde stared at her new timepiece. From its square case to its bracelet, it was beautifully, painstakingly done. A masterpiece it was indeed. And as much as she hated to admit to herself, Lady Godelieve was right.

"Monsieur Gautier cared for Queen Hitomi very much," Lady Godelieve said. "You can't blame him if you remind him of her."

"And someone once said I have my father's features."

"Really? Who said that?"

"You did," Isolde said bluntly.

Then, a moment of silence.

"Well," Lady Godelieve finally said, smiling. "You used to."

Isolde turned to Lady Godelieve and smiled back.

Lady Godelieve's cheeks reddened slightly as she retracted from the Crown Princess' stare. "Listen," she said, almost stammering. "About tonight… I'm really sorry it was ruined and all. This is your first evening with me on a gathering and --"

Isolde shook her head. "It can't be helped," she said. She noticed how Lady Godelieve reacted to her but paid no attention to it. "The press is focused on the crowd. If I keep away from it, I will be fine."

"If you say so," Lady Godelieve said and stood. "I should be going. I'll come back for you soon."

"Take your time," Isolde said, nodding. "I'll wait here." She watched Lady Godelieve cover distance away from her, sighing heavily, and lifted her head toward the dark and starless heavens. A sky as empty and dark would make fireworks flash and display their best, she thought. Blindly, she reached for the pendant. Then, she placed her stare on it as she turned it over.

* * *

The crystal lighting reflected against the dark hall floor. Such shimmer was comparable to the guests who have graced the spacious function hall, each of them dressed so elegantly for the evening. Some of them were of illustrious backgrounds. Some were of affluent lineage. Men in expensive suits and women in designer dresses mingled with one another, the social circle dividing into smaller social circles of different interests in the passing of the evening.

Eriko was part of this society. Yet, after speaking with a few ladies and a number of men, she chose to no longer speak to anyone for the rest of the evening. The ladies discussed matters that would not hold her interest for long. And the men, most of them, merely exhibited interest in her. No more of them, she thought, then glancing at her father standing a great distance from her as he conversed with the host of the gathering, Master Shigano Hayashi, and Mrs. Charlton. She chose to separate from him to avoid encountering more of the guests.

She set her eyes on the grand, framed canvas on the wall behind her. It seemed to be of a garden. There was a fountain surrounded by concrete flooring and four lit lampposts. And by the concrete flooring and posts were plants with flowers, mostly yellow. Fireworks scattered across the night sky behind it. Nicely done, Eriko thought of the art, as she looked for the signature of its creator. There was supposed to be a signature at the bottom of the canvas, but she could not seem to find it.

"There you are," a voice then came from behind Eriko.

Eriko recognized the elderly male voice. 'Again,' she said to herself, exasperated, and turned around. She thought she had already steered clear of all the young and old "hounds of the evening"… even him, the most persistent of them all. It was then an uneasy feeling crept through her.

An elderly man with a receding hairline and of stubby built tottered toward her.

Eriko took a step back as the scent of alcohol crossed her sense of smell. Mr. Barnard L. Charlton, husband of Mrs. Charlton and one of the few moguls in the guest list, was intoxicated. The unease in her worsened, yet she remained calm. "Mr. Charlton," she greeted. "Mrs. Charlton is with --"

Mr. Charlton quickly grabbed hold of Eriko's arm before she could finish and pulled her forcibly. "Very exquisite," he said. "You are very exquisite, my dear…"

"Mr. Charlton," Eriko uttered. The smell of alcohol seemed too much for her composure to keep. Yet, she remained calm. "Aren't we being a bit improper?" she said. No, she thought, attempting to relieve her arm of the elderly man's tight grasp. She wished to call for help, but --

Two men suddenly came from behind Mr. Charlton and immediately pulled him from Eriko.

The mansion guards, Eriko recognized the black suits. They were part of the uniformly-dressed men and women scattered about the mansion.

"Mr. Barnard L. Charlton," one of the guards said. "…again." Then, he turned to Eriko. "Did we barge in on something, Miss?"

"He has had a drink too many," Eriko answered. "Please take him somewhere to sober down." Again. The elderly tycoon must be a frequent guest of the Shigano Mansion that the guards already recognize him as a nuisance.

The old man struggled from the two guards. He opened his mouth to speak, but the other guard interrupted him.

"Time to sober down again, sir," the other guard said and tightened his grasp Mr. Charlton's right arm. He turned to Eriko. "Mr. Charlton shouldn't be bothering you anymore… for this evening at least."

"Thank you," Eriko said to the guards.

The guards turned around as they began to escort the intoxicated mogul out of the function hall.

Eriko watched to her relief as the guards led Mr. Charlton away. Had they not come, she would have been in greater risk. Who could have sent for them, she thought. She did not believe this to be of coincidence but did not ponder further. Mr. Charlton is gone. Again, she glanced at her father from the distant spot where she stood. He was still conversing with Mr. Shigano and Mrs. Charlton, as if oblivious of what had happened to her daughter.

"Everything all right, Torii-sama?"

Eriko turned to her right. She recognized the bespectacled lady approaching her. Takeshima Tsutako, the same girl who had taken photographs of her that sparked interest across Lillian. Given that previous incident and her sudden appearance after Mr. Charlton had bee escorted away by mansion guards, perhaps the same person could have had something to do with what happened earlier. "I am fine now, Takeshima-san," Eriko answered. "What happened earlier… could you have had something to do with it?"

"I overheard some ladies talk about Mr. Torii's daughter and Mr. Charlton," Tsutako explained, pushing her glasses. "I... asked the guards to keep an eye on him."

"Thank you," Eriko said. She paused for a moment as she observed a well-dressed Tsutako and smiled. The bespectacled girl that had saved her looked charming in the evening dress, she thought.

Tsutako shook her head. "Glad to be of your assistance, Torii-sama." She paused for a moment, glancing at Mrs. Charlton then back at Eriko. "The Charltons are frequent guests in the Shigano mansion. Mr. Charlton can be troublesome once he's taken in too much."

"Then, I don't understand why Master Shigano would invite him at all," Eriko said.

"Mrs. Charlton is Otouji-san's friend," Tsutako said. "I suppose that's all I can say."

"Otouji-san…" Eriko wondered. "Master Shigano is your uncle?" Again, she observed the painting on the wall.

"My father's uncle," Tsutako explained. "He doesn't like being called 'Ojii-san'." She followed Eriko's line of sight to the painting and turned to it as well. "Otouji-san calls it 'The Secret'," she said.

"The… Secret…" Eriko repeated.

"Strange how some artists name their work," Tsutako remarked. "Otouji-san was a frustrated painter. This was his first and his last. He chose to serve the Royal Family of France."

"I see," Eriko said, finally lifting her stare from the canvas. She remembered her father telling her about Master Shigano on the way to the mansion. "Otou-san told me Master Shigano retired just after King Jean Aimeri ascended the throne and decided to settle here in Japan."

"My father took his place," Tsutako said casually. "He left the job months after the Queen Consort died, but he was asked to return just recently."

"I see," Eriko said. The Royal Family of France… It was possible that Tsutako may have met any of them, most likely the Crown Princess. Given this, she felt the urge to ask more questions but refrained from doing so. She was not to let herself gain even more interest toward anything or anyone connected to the Crown Princess. Again, she turned her attention to the painting on the wall. "There is," she spoke after a pause. "Such a place here in the mansion, isn't there?"

"Beyond the tinted glass door," Tsutako answered, eyes focused on the painting. She was referring to the door next to it. "You can barely see the path to it at night. Otouji-san told me to --" She stopped as she turned to where Eriko stood. "-- walk straight until I see light."

Eriko was gone.

* * *

The dances were to begin shortly after the host had spoken. Guests with their dates stood outside dance floor as they waited. Lady Godelieve glanced at them, feeling a touch of envy. She long wanted someone to ask her to have even just one dance. But such was a wish close to impossible. Princess Isolde would never ask her, more so in public.

"Besides those men, I'm betting that half of these ladies would want to dance with Her Highness as well, if she were present," Melisent whispered to Lady Godelieve.

"Stop it, Melisent," Lady Godelieve rebuked, lightly tapping the back of her assistant's hand. "But you're right." Her voice softened upon saying this. Melisent was right, needless to say.

"I still see a few of them from here," Melisent said, feigning to scan through the gadget in her hands. "She may have to wait until the night finishes. Should I call Julienne?"

Lady Godelieve shook her head. "She'll be fine."

"They say the fireworks are nice to view from there," Melisent remarked of the place Lady Godelieve had kept Isolde. "Other than a dance, seeing the display with her is a romantic idea, don't you think so?"

"Even that is impossible right now," Lady Godelieve said.

"The press, the press, and the press," Melisent said. Her eyes resumed to wander surreptitiously as the two of them were silent. "The man with Mr. Yamada, he's looking this way."

"That's Mr. Faulkner," Lady Godelieve said, recognizing the gentleman in gray looking to their direction.

"You know him?"

"Mr. Yamada introduced me to him a while back," Lady Godelieve said. "A nice man he is."

"Handsome, too," Melisent said smilingly.

"Maybe," Lady Godelieve said. Handsome as he may be, the man did not seem to interest her at all.

"He's coming this way."

The lights in the hall slowly began to dim. The first dance was about to start.

* * *

The music began to play.

Isolde glanced at the loudspeakers under the lights. The dances, she thought. The first dance has started.

She, as part of the royalty, should know how to dance, as her tutor once told her. She would do well in her lessons. Though, dancing never managed to catch her interest.

It was often Lady Godelieve who would initiate practice with her. Lady Godelieve often asked her to teach her the dances as practice. However, Isolde wanted each practice in secret, and they would dance behind the doors of her chamber in the palace.

'It's silly, but sometimes, I imagine you asking me in a gathering,' Lady Godelieve once said to her after a practice.

Isolde remembered laughing in response. Then, she did not know of Lady Godelieve's feelings for her.

In the midst of the music, Isolde suddenly heard the faint sound of steps. The steps were coming from outside, and they seemed to draw near. Lady Godelieve told her to stay where she was. She was not to go outside or return on her own. But something in her heart seemed to progressively seize her at every pace, as if telling her to take a step forward. She stood as a shadow peered from the dimness beyond the beyond the entrance.

Closer.

Closer.

The pendant dropped from Isolde's hands. She wished her eyes were simply fooling her, but they were not. Her heart threatened from its cage as she gradually felt herself freeze from where she stood. This, she expected at the very least.

* * *

Eriko was feeling her control slip from her grasp. Before her… of all possibilities to occur this evening, this she had not predicted. She was not to show any sign of surprise. Not even a speck of it.

"Your Highness…" Eriko finally uttered guising the edginess she felt with the calmness of her voice. The Crown Princess simply stared at her, not saying a word. The gentle, lonely stare of her blue eyes and her silence only made Eriko more anxious.


End file.
